I Will Always Regret
by halfatheory357
Summary: DLV: Sequel to "Speak No Evil." Eight years after the war ended Zuko is stuck with the stress of post war. But those don't compare to a wife he never loved, a girl he wants, and the one that got away, but when she dies, she leaves a mysterious messasge...
1. The Summary

Disclaimer: The following chapter is entirely fictitious. Any similarity to the history of any person living or dead is entirely coincidental and unintentional, except when specifically noted otherwise in the cast and crew credits. All celebrity voices are impersonated and no celebrities have endorsed any aspect of this fic.

Pt.1: Author's Note

Pt.2: TL; DR

Pt.3: Why You Should Read it Anyways

**Author's Note:** Hello there and welcome! If you do not know this, I should warn you this story is a sequel. However, all you really need is a summary to more or less know what's going on, so here's the thing:

In my last story the Aang gang lands on an island called Kuusai Isle where they're taken in by a kind woman, while a gas leak forces Zuko and his crew to seek refuge on the notorious no man's island of Engoku. While the Aang gang gets great hospitality, Zuko gets nothing more than a shabby hotel room without a bed, window or hygiene. And that's the nicest hotel on the island! Anyways, the Aang gang meets the niece of the woman who took them in, her name is Tsuchi and she's the kind of girl who likes to get down and dirty. She's active but lazy at times and she's the kind of girl who plays by her own rules. She's an earthbender so the Aang gang was going to allow her to join them. Zuko on the other hand, after witnessing a gang fight from his hotel balcony break out in the middle of the street and seeing no one do anything about it, spots a girl on a rooftop who runs when she's almost caught there. Thinking that was oddly suspicious since no one did anything about the street fight, he goes to investigate. As it turns out the girl's a firebender and after Iroh sees her fight of several gangsters single-handedly he invites her on. Sort of weird.

Anyways, guess what??? As it turns out, those two are sisters. And if you're wondering how one turned out to be a firebender and the other turned out to be an earthbender, well they both have both… Daddy was a firebender, mommy was an earthbender... zOMG, bet you didn't get that. Anyways, the Aang gang is accepting of Tsuchi and figure they're killing two birds with one stone. Zuko on the other hand remembers the new girl as the notorious Hiashi, daughter of the traitor Enjou, who married an Earth Kingdom woman and soiled the blood of the Motherland. Needless to say the mother was killed, and so was Enjou, just a couple of days earlier (recently). Well, Hiashi helps Zuko to get the Avatar, vowing that if any of them are going to get out with something it's Zuko. So they catch the Avatar once and Hiashi reunites with her sister but it's not happy, and Tsuchi being so young when her sister left doesn't know what her sister's name is, but Hiashi knows Tsuchi's name. Anyways, the Aang gang escapes and goes to a weird place and find this secret cave with writing on it with a wall that looks like a timeline of every little even that's happened in the history of the war, only it only seems that way because the thing's not their language, but in a code. While investigating inside the cave they stumble upon a small dagger that somehow 'chooses' Sokka as its handler. As it turns out this is a freaky sword that can not only cut through any material with ease, but through space itself!!! They can travel to different worlds! Well they do and Zuko and Hiashi get a hold of a similar knife and so now there's this intergalactic chase going on. Some of the places they go to are as followed: a world where they bend elements too, but it's pyrokinesis, hydrokinesis, terrakinesis, and aerokinesis and they're more like not Asians; a weird cross between Oompa Loompas and Oz; an old France type world in a cave (REALLY big and elaborate cities inside of mountains); a meteor belts like planet; a place run by talking animals that invite good people along… (Right about there Hiashi disrupts the barrier and they get locked out of the next world); an Aztec like world with the language y todo that the Aang gang can't understand (and Sokka meets this princess who he presumably nails after three days. She's the Yue of the story) and ROSWELL NEW MEXICO!!! Hahaha.

Also some side drama for Hiashi and Zuko: just some random bickering and Hiashi gets jumped by three old gangsters Sureiyaa, Shiden, and Gingitsune and almost dies (yeah, Hiashi was in a gang); after losing the Avatar in the next world because Hiashi wasn't there Zuko is ready to throw her off the ship but then decides against it which is about then you really begin to suspect Zuko has feelings for Hiashi. Then Zuko accidently gets invited to an end of the war banquet for any available and high ranking Fire Nation military personnel. You meet some colorful characters: Marukai, or Zuko's ex-fiancé (an arranged marriage to be specific), a brother and his 'Mean Girl' status sister, Xang and Zayika (respectively); a shy tiny boy and his oxymoronic date, Lian and Park (retrospectively, that looks like Linkin Park…); and the Coup de grâce, the accomplice to her father's murder and the man who was supposed to kill her and his obviously abused date, Hykiru and Kurogane. Hykiru is rude and a drunk while Kurogane's a bit suspicious…

Anyways when it comes to Roswell (they speak English, the Avatar people speak Chinese) Hiashi goes to prove herself and takes them on herself. She manages to take them all down (except for Aang who isn't there) but she's intercepted by Azula who's already apprehended Zuko. Azula arrests everyone and throws them into prison. While Katara, Sokka, Tsuchi, Zuko, and Hiashi are in jail, Fire Lord Ozai is mysteriously shot (mysterious because there aren't any guns… and for some reason no one heard anything… and for some reason Fire Lord Ozai didn't fight back…) and after disowning his son, dies and makes Azula the new Fire Lord. While in prison, Katara, Sokka, Tsuchi, and even Hiashi (Zuko was taken out after his father was shot) make a plan to escape and defeat the Fire Lord without Aang. Katara, Sokka, and Tsuchi leave to gather up all their friends from the old worlds to help them out. Hiashi stays behind and convinces Zuko to fight against the Fire Nation to get his throne back. Zuko reluctantly agrees, only agreeing to fight to get his throne back. So Aang comes back while Sokka, Katara and Tsuchi are warding off the Air ships (remember the series finale battle? Yeah, that's it. Except for some tweaking that it…).

In the meantime, Zuko and Hiashi fight against the incoming Fire Nation and Hiashi finds out that of all people, Zhao killed her father. Throughout the story Hiashi has shown mixed feelings to her father, mostly hatred, but instead she viciously attacks Zhao and beats him to death (BTW, that wouldn't be her first kill…) So all is good and Aang gang goes back to Tsuchi's home only to find the whole thing burned to the ground. Tsuchi, after some drama, decided that it was no accident and decided to leave the planet entirely in order to protect everyone. Meanwhile Hiashi and Zuko have a quasi heart to heart conversation and Zuko somewhat proposes to her. She doesn't want to get married to him and says it's not fair to him considering she's a hybrid, but Zuko doesn't take no for an answer, telling her that he can convince her…

The next morning Zuko wakes up to see his floor speckled in blood and skin, but no sign of Hiashi, striking some eerie similarities as to what happened to his dad…

NEHO, the main circulation of this story is based on a rebellion organization formally known as The Universal Resistance, or simply the Resistance. The Resistance is a sophisticated and elaborate fleet of rebels from all four of the nations. Yes, I did say all FOUR. Not three, four. The Resistance believes in strict separation of all nations and therefore hates all mixed raced people and kills them. They're not just killers of mixed blooded people, but of Fire Nation soldiers too, which is why they kill Fire Lord Ozai. The Resistance has also mastered their practices of 'death bending' (manipulating their native elements to kill people), their counterfeit Avatars (manmade by crossbreeding instead of natural; they're very few of them since the crossbreeding has to be specific, and if they're not up to par, then they're immediately killed), and their new form of 'mindbending,' which uses the art of suggestion, hypnosis, and manipulation, as opposed to actual telekinesis.

At the end of the story, about eight years later, you're brought to a small monastery in the Fire Nation where there are three women talking about why they became shrine maidens. It gets late and each parts for her respected huts. You follow one who seems normal, but the Resistance assassin shows up, calling her Hiashi. Hiashi and the masked assassin fight and mid-fight, Hiashi de-masks the assassin, only to reveal it's Kurogane from the party. Hiashi is disarmed and unable to fight back and does her best to plead to Kurogane. Hiashi managed to save her from Hykiru once at the party and she continues to remind Kurogane of it. You can tell Kurogane really doesn't want to kill Hiashi, but she does anyways by stabbing her with a sword laced with nightshade. Before Kurogane leaves, she tells Hiashi she will do her best to protect her family (Hiashi has three kids and a husband) but that she makes no promises. And just as mysteriously as she arrives, Kurogane disappears. With the last of her energy, Hiashi writes on the floor with ink mixed with blood, a final note, and I quote:

"_To my family:_

_To my husband, I love you and thank you for loving me for who I am. To my children I love you, too, and Kuzon, I am sorry for everything. Your father will tell you why. But I only hope you can forgive me._

_And to Zuko, I will always regret-_

She stopped writing and dragged her thumb through the last four words and instead wrote:

_I'm glad you never found me._

_Hiashi"_

And with those final words written in the floor, she dies.

'-'

**TL; DR:** In the last fic I wrote, Zuko picks up some chick whose a half breed. He hates her at first but then doesn't and finds out he likes her. After a big epic thing he asks her to marry her, but she leaves without answering. This is the sequel.

And that there is the summary of the story so that way you don't have to read the whole thing. I mean, if you want to, then that'd be freaking awesome, but you don't have to.

'-'

**Why You Should Read it Anyways:** if you are interested in reading about Zuko and his struggle with women then this is the fic for you. He deals with a wife he doesn't love, a woman he use to love, and the woman he will love. He suffers some heartache, does a little traveling, fights a big fight, you even get a glimpse of future Aang, Katara, Sokka, and Suki, Sokka and Suki in particular play an important role. He then gets into a quasi epic battle, he faces more heartache, but then it ends. So I implore you to keep reading. Thanks and enjoy.


	2. The Now

Disclaimer: The following chapter is entirely fictitious. Any similarity to the history of any person living or dead is entirely coincidental and unintentional, except when specifically noted otherwise in the cast and crew credits. All celebrity voices are impersonated and no celebrities have endorsed any aspect of this fic.

Chapter One: The Now

'-'

_I don't want to be here_, Zuko thought to himself.

"_Fire Lord Zuko, are you listening to me?"_ a voice said in the distance.

_I just want to rest…_he thought

"_Fire Lord Zuko, we needed to leave ten minutes ago! We're late!"_

_Just let me be…_

"_Fire Lord Zuko, the Earth King won't be happy!"_

_I don't care, just leave me alone…_

"FIRE LORD ZUKO!" the voice of his assistant shouted at him.

"What!" Zuko shouted back, removing his head from his hands. The sun was beating down despite the fact it was winter, but the air was still chilled, just bright. He shielded his eyes to protect them from the sudden influx of light only to see his assistant standing angrily at his side.

"Fire Lord Zuko, the Earth King is waiting for us!" the assistant snapped at his boss. "We're ten minutes late and you were late the last time too! They're not very happy with you and the Fire Nation is already taking a lot of heat during this negotiation already. We're already 1.5 million gold in debt and the other two nations are not happy with us as it is! If you want to reduce their already preposterous demands then you have to start kissing ass!"

"Whatever," Zuko mumbled. He pushed himself away from his chair and forced himself to stand up. "Where am I going?"

"Damn it, Fire Lord Zuko, it's in your war room," the assistant groaned while he rubbed his temples.

"What makes you think you can talk to me like that?" Zuko snapped, heading to the war room.

"Sir, with all due respect, you've gone through twelve assistants since you started and every time you fire one it's because they never told you anything, or they didn't remind you of something, or something else along that line. Now I've lasted longer than the others and I don't know why, but I'm starting to think the others were fired unjustly." The assistant adjusted his glassed and glared at the Fire Lord. "I'm starting to think it was just you."

"Shut up," he growled at the man. The two of them reached the war room an extra ten minutes later and was greeted by an irate Earth King.

"So nice of you to join me, Fire Lord Zuko," the Earth King said sarcastically. "And only twenty minutes late today. You were early this time."

"I'm sorry," Zuko mumbled, taking his spot across the table, "I had a prior engagement."

"Interesting," the older gentleman replied. "Anyways, I was hoping to renegotiate our treaty."

"Renegotiate?" Zuko scoffed. "What is there to renegotiate? I'm already giving up the colonies and paying retribution of a million gold pieces, what else is there to do?"

"There's the thing," the King smiled. "I do not believe one and a half million will cover everything. I was thinking more along the lines of thirty-two million?"

"Thirty-two million gold pieces?" Zuko exclaimed, slamming his fists into the table. "Are you kidding me? We're in debt enough as it is! How do you expect us to get that money?"

"I also want restrictions on your military," the man added. "I want to make sure this will never happen again. I was thinking no more than ten thousand in your army—"

"That's ridiculous!" Zuko snarled, but the man did not skip a beat.

"Three battleships—"

"You're kidding me—"

"Two cruisers and a destroyer, prohibit the manufacture, import, and export of weapons and poison gas, and armed aircraft and tanks prohibited. And that's my final offer." The man folded his hands on his lap and simply watched the Fire Lord.

"How the hell do you expect me to manage all that?" Zuko yelled. "The Fire Nation is mad at me already and changing our emblem was hard enough! And now you expect me to give you more money _and_ cut our military?"

"I will not sign the treaty until you agree to this," the King stated. "If you don't then we attack you. Your defenses are weak enough as it is so you won't be able to fight back."

"And if I agree to this then my nation turns on me!" Zuko growled. "They'll riot in the streets and I'll be killed! I'm trying to make things right for my nation but your demands are making it harder for me to be nice to you."

"Fire Lord Zuko, I swear to you that is my final offer, but remember your nation is weak enough as it is. It would be a shame if something happened." The man slipped the newly revised treaty to Zuko and smiled wickedly at him. "Just sign the treaty and I will be on my way."

"You're damn right you'll be on your way!" Zuko snarled, pushing himself into a standing position. "I agreed to our first treaty and now you're just getting greedy! Get out of my war room!"

"Let me remind you, Fire Lord Zuko, that your country killed a whole race of Air Nomads cold heartedly, almost destroyed the Water Tribe population, and killed half of my people! Now why don't you go tell the families of the dead soldiers why you refuse to give them retribution and why you refuse to reassure them that this kind of thing will never happen again? Or have you forgotten all this?"

"I did not forget, but you're out of control with your demands!" Zuko retorted. You need to be reasonable!"

"I'm sure I'll be reasonable when your nation finally falls!" the man said loudly. Zuko growled but finally reluctantly scrawled his name on the piece of parchment. "It was nice doing business with you, Fire Lord Zuko," the Earth King grinned. He took the document from Zuko and neatly rolled it up. "I hope the next time we meet it won't be under these pretences."

"You know, you tell me my nation killed millions, but I'm running the Fire Nation now," Zuko said quietly. "And you're a disgrace to your country." The man simply smiled and left the war room. "Damn it!" Zuko shouted, kicking the table over. "What the hell is his problem?"

"Bastards at the Earth Kingdom, I tell you, sir," the assistant rolled his eyes.

"What am I going to tell everyone?" Zuko mumbled. "That I messed everything up again?"

"You didn't mess everything up, Fire Lord," the assistant said calmly. "You did what you had to. I mean, what could you do anyways if he was threatening you like that?"

"Yes, but this isn't the first time," Zuko snapped. "I keep having to make these awful decisions all in favor of the Earth Kingdom, and now my country hates me! Even more than they already did anyways."

"I know, sir, but there's very little you can do," the assistant replied. "This country wants a lot of something for a whole lot of nothing. They don't realize the decisions you have to make are usually a catch-22. They're just stupid."

"I've had eight years to fix this damn war, but I've got nothing!" Zuko snarled. "They're mad at me for changing our emblem! Don't you know how many riots have broken out in the streets, people flaunting out old insignia and demanding we start the war up again? And now I agreed to cut back on our military! They're going to kill me now!"

"I swear to you, sir, they're not going to kill you," the assistant sighed.

"Yes they will, I guarantee it," he mumbled under his breath. He walked out of the room and back to the outside world where surely someone believed he was doing a bad job.

"Zuko," a woman's voice echoed down the hall, "can I talk to you for a moment?" He turned around to face the woman who called him. Approaching was the woman with the light brown hair he hated the most with the toddler he hated even more attached to her hip. She was nothing but the embodiment of everything he had failed at, being rubbed in his face.

It only made it worse that he was forced to marry it.

"What the hell do you want, Marukai?" Zuko barked. "Can't you see I'm busy?"

"Oh, whatever, I know you don't want to talk to me," she scoffed. "The nanny sent a message saying she couldn't come in today and I was wondering if you can send one of the chambermaids to come care for him while I go visit his tutor."

"Why the hell would I want to take care of that thing?" Zuko snapped. "It's your job to take care of him, not mine."

"You know what, you should be nicer to your son, Zuko," she snapped back.

"He's not my kid, damn it!" he shouted loud enough to scare the birds in the tree next to them. "How the hell do you expect me to father a kid when I can't even stand you? We don't even share the same room on the same floor! So what the hell made you think you could convince me that that was my kid? Are you stupid or just that desperate to stay here?"

"Fuck you Zuko!" she shouted.

"Yeah, buck you, dooco!" the baby suddenly exclaimed, giggling excessively after. Marukai's face contracted and she shot her head to the baby.

"Good boy," she whispered, pecking him on the head. "Anyways, I'm your wife. And if you're going to keep with your attitude then this is as good of an heir as you're going to get. And that's what you get for being so damn introverted that no woman wants to marry you. You're just lucky I came—"

"Lucky? How the hell am I _lucky_? I would rather die and have someone not related to me take the crown than be married to you!" Marukai smiled a devious smile.

"Then you get to have both," she smirked. "Congratulations. Anyways, just send up a god damn chambermaid and I'll get out of your business."

"They're maids, not babysitters," he stated. "Their job is to clean up the castle, not take care of him. I'm not sending one to you because they have a job to do."

"What are you talking about? Girls love children." She rolled her eyes and shifted the toddler to the other hip. "Just get the god damn maid." She shoved past him and the assistant with the baby in hand but not before the child could squeal, "Bye bye buck ship!" to Zuko.

"Cute kid," the assistant said sarcastically when Marukai was out of earshot. "Glad it's not yours or I would assume crazy just runs in your family."

"Shut up," Zuko snapped at him. "You shouldn't talk to me like that. I'm the Fire Lord. You should be groveling to me."

"I don't have to grovel to you," the assistant laughed. "If it wasn't for me, you'd be a mess. I mean, no offense to you, but you need me." Zuko rolled his eyes and placed his hands on the banister in front of him.

"I hate my life," he muttered. "Eight years ago I thought I wanted this. I fought tooth and nail for my right to the throne. Now I don't even want it. I think we would have been better off as a world power. I don't know how I'm going to fix this."

"Sir, you're young, you'll bounce back."

"Young?" Zuko exclaimed. "I'm older than you!"

"Still young, I would consider," the assistant stated. "And don't worry, when you find another woman, you can take her as a wife, instead of that crazy broad."

"There's only one woman I would have taken," Zuko said quietly. "And I don't know where she is."

"You can't tell me you've never had a girlfriend," his assistant chuckled. "There has to have been at least one. Someone has to have liked you at one point."

"I'm not you okay!" Zuko exploded. "I didn't get a childhood like yours! My life consisted mostly of staying at my father's side or out at sea on a wild goose chase or running this country! I didn't know very many girls in my life."

_And the only one who I did get to know ran out on me… Either that or she was kidnapped…_

"Well, what about Mai?" his assistant asked.

"Excuse me?" Zuko said, taken aback.

"Yeah, there's this girl, her name is Mai, and she actually just started working here in the palace. I remember someone telling me she use to know you when you were younger, and then they said something about a childhood crush you guys had—"

"Shh!" Zuko hissed at him. "That was a long time ago! And besides, I doubt she even thinks that way of me that way anymore."

"She's not married, sir," the assistant nudged. "You should take a look at her. Eh? _EH_?"

"Stop talking," Zuko grunted. "Your voice annoys me. And you shouldn't be meddling in my business in the first place."

"Yeah, but I disagree," the assistant replied. "From what I understand, you're miserable. You need something good in your life. For crying out loud, you were handed a country that was shit-faced, you were forced to marry a cheating whore, and you have everyone against you. Face it, you need a vacation."

"I don't need a vacation!" Zuko snarled. He grasped the edge of the rail tightly and sighed roughly.

_I just want my life back…_

'-'

Sorry this chapter is so short. I didn't mean to make it short, but it was kind of awkward to add this to the other chapter coming up... So yeah... sorry. But I'm trying to make it as good as possible, people. Thank you, though, for reading, and please stay tuned for the next chapter!


	3. The Dark Deed

Disclaimer: The following chapter is entirely fictitious. Any similarity to the history of any person living or dead is entirely coincidental and unintentional, except when specifically noted otherwise in the cast and crew credits. All celebrity voices are impersonated and no celebrities have endorsed any aspect of this fic.

Chapter Two: The Dark Deed

'-'

"Fire Lord Zuko, calm down," his assistant said blandly. "You don't have any meeting scheduled for a few months. I can arrange for your family to vacation in the Changbai Mountains—"

"I don't want to go anywhere with them," Zuko interrupted, walking away from the railing and down the corridor with his assistant at his side. "I hate that woman."

"Sir, I know arranged marriages can be a bitch, but your son—"

"How many times do I have to tell you? I don't share a room with that horrid woman!" Zuko turned to snarl at his assistant. "What would make you think that was my kid?"

"My bad," the man shrugged. "How could I forget Marukai's known for being a whore?"

"Damn right," Zuko mumbled. The two of them walked away from the railing, down the stairs, into the courtyard and into the cold winter air. Zuko inhaled the chill and frowned. He was fairly disappointed that their location on the planet would not call for colder weather than they had now. "How are my searches going?" he asked after a few minutes of silence. "Anything new?"

"No one knows anything about your mother, sir," the assistant frowned as he flipped his notes around. "One of the maids recommended a witch up in the mountain that seems to be pretty good at tracking people, but I figured you wouldn't be interested in that."

"What good would a witch be for me?" Zuko scoffed.

"Exactly," the assistant smirked. "You're a skeptic so I figured to throw that away."

"Okay," Zuko sighed, "well—"

"Fire Lord Zuko," a soldier appeared from the entrance of the corridor, "there is someone here to see you."

"Tell them I'm in a meeting," Zuko replied quickly.

"Fire Lady Marukai is trying to get rid of them, and I know how you feel—"

"Do you know what it's about?" he asked.

"No, sir," the guard replied, "but Fire Lady Marukai was talking to them and wouldn't let any of us near the people. I thought maybe you knew something about it." Zuko groaned loudly and headed to the front of the palace. The walk across the courtyard was long but from where he was he could clearly see a flustered Marukai snapping at several men and one woman who was dressed like the shrine maidens from across the mountains. He watched Marukai's arms flail and to see her trying to get rid of people who wanted to talk to him only aggravated him more with each step, even if he did not want to talk to them initially.

"Marukai!" Zuko shouted before he even reached the palace gates. Marukai jumped from his surprise appearance and turned to block the people from view.

"What are you doing here?" the sandy haired woman snapped at him. "I thought you were meeting with the Earth King?"

"I got out early!" he snapped back. "What the hell are you doing? Those people are here to see me and you're getting rid of them? Get out of here, you harlot!"

"Excuse me?" Marukai hissed, but not with shock or even a hint of surprise. "Is that any way to speak to your wife?"

"You know I hate you, you wench now get out of here!" Zuko shouted at the top of his lungs. Marukai glared at him but did not change her stance.

"This doesn't concern you, Zuko!" she snapped. "Just go away, I'll handle this!"

"Guards!" Zuko called and in an instant several men were at his side. "Send her away and make sure she doesn't try and interfere with my meeting." The men swooped in and took her without hesitation.

"I will get you for this, Zuko!" she cried. "You can't keep me locked up all day!" Zuko rolled his eyes but finally reopened the palace gate to allow the visitors in.

"Who are you?" were the first words Zuko said to them.

"I'm sorry to bother you, Fire Lord Zuko, but this woman has something she needs to tell you," the first soldier said to him. "She's with the Eikando Temple from across the mountains and she feels she needs to tell you something." The soldier beckoned the frail elder to step forward so that she would not have to speak so loud.

"Please forgive me for disrupting your day," the woman said in a quiet voice. "My name is Nobuko and I am the head priestess of the Eikando Temple. We recently were victim to a horrible crime. One of our shrine maidens was found murdered in her hut a few days ago and there seems to be no trace of any intruder."

"Okay," Zuko frowned, "but why are you telling me this? I think your local city militia can take care of this—"

"Well, that is the thing," the woman said slowly, "the woman who died actually left a note on the floor before she passed, and she made mention to you."

"Did she have any issues she wanted to raise?" Zuko asked almost sarcastically, but had to bite his tongue.

"No, I mean she left a message _for _you," the woman replied. "I was simply wondering if you knew her. Her name was Shihong."

"I don't know anyone named Shihong," he said and was ready to dismiss the older woman when she continued to speak.

"She was about your age, with scars on her face, black hair, she walked with a brown and gold cane—"

"Cane?" Zuko snapped unintentionally. "You said she had scars?"

"Yes, and two different colored eyes," the woman cheered. "She had a black fire rat as well. Do you know her?" Zuko's heart froze and sunk deep in his chest.

"You said," Zuko attempted to swallow the lump developing in his throat, "she was murdered?"

"Yes, I'm sorry Fire Lord Zuko," the priestess sighed. Zuko pushed the gate door open and beckoned the lady inside.

"What exactly happened?" Zuko asked somberly when the woman was finally on the inside of the gates, the two soldiers that escorted her still on the outside.

"Nobody knows, that's the thing," the woman sighed. "She had four huts next to her: two on either side, one in front of her, and one behind her. She did not come to our Morning Prayer session so one of our ichikos went to her hut to see if she was there. The ichiko said she knocked on the door and no one answered so she looked through the window to see Shihong on the floor. She was stabbed once, but it looks she fought back. One of the coroners' said she could have survived, but she was poisoned. Nightshade, he said it was."

"Hiashi," Zuko corrected quietly.

"Excuse me?" the old woman frowned.

"Her name was Hiashi, not 'Shihong,'" Zuko repeated harshly.

"Hiashi," the woman reiterated quietly. "Why would she lie?"

"She was in hiding," Zuko said through his teeth. "She wasn't like by a lot of people."

"We do not judge at the Eikando Temple," the woman frowned. "We do not give out information to any outside sources. She would have been perfectly safe."

"Which is why she would have lied," Zuko mumbled. "By lying to you too she gave herself extra protection. Even if you didn't tell anyone she was there, if they ever got a hold of anything they wouldn't find her." Zuko sat on one of the closest benches and buried his face in his hands.

"I am so sorry, Fire Lord Zuko," the woman said in a quiet voice, patting him on the shoulder. "You must have been really close to her."

Zuko was not listening to the woman. All he could think of was Hiashi. He thought she was taken from him only to find out eight years later that she was killed. Again the events paralleled his father's death in that no one heard her fighting. No doubt it was The Resistance. They were the only ones who would want her dead. When the woman told him that Hiashi was dead he was unsure of what to think. He had looked for her for eight years before finally deciding she was gone, and to find out she died only a while later… His heart was broken.

"I want to see her," Zuko suddenly said. The old woman was taken aback and she gave the Fire Lord a confused look.

"What do you mean see her?" the woman asked.

"The coroner should still have her," Zuko stated, springing to his feet. "You!" he shouted at his assistant. "Tell the chauffer to get ready! I'm leaving for Eikando right now."

"Right now?" the assistant asked. "Sir, if you leave right now, you're going to arrive at midnight. Why now wait until tomorrow morning—"

"Right now!" Zuko snapped finally striding off to his chamber. "I'm leaving right now!"

'-'

"The dark deed you requested is done, High Master Keme," Kurogane muttered in his office. The small grey tomb they were in was plastered with Resistance propaganda and posters of the planets they knew of. Bookshelves lined the empty spaces on the wall as did photos of the four nations. Several ornaments decorated either the floor or the small tables against the wall. Despite four friendly flowers hanging from the ceiling, one for every national color, the room always made Kurogane uncomfortable since she knew what went on in there.

From firsthand experience.

"Very well, Miss Kurogane," a man from behind a chair said in a deep voice. "This is your fourth very successful kill. If you keep this up you may be our best assassin to date."

"Thank you sir," she nodded slightly. "It was not hard at all."

"Nonsense," the man scoffed, pushing himself up to a standing position. "Hiashi was the most elusive hybrid we had and you found her. It took some of our best minds thirteen years to find her, but you found her in as little as eight. I would have to say that is something. Most of our assassins take a while to get into the ring of things, but you seem to be on your way."

"Killing is not that hard, sir," she replied curtly.

"Killing? No, of course not. Murder? That is an art, especially if you do not wish to be caught." The man walked up to the wall and began to thumb through the books on the shelves. "Why do you think we train you all at such a young age? When you learn an art you can't teach those who are older. They question everything given to them or sometimes they just can't handle it as well. Murder is just like playing the sungi horn or even painting a portrait. It takes a lot of skill and effort, and much time of practice in order to master the technique. You have yet to be caught and you are well on your way to getting close to the record of our top assassin, Jin-Ho. Very prestigious for a woman."

"Thank you, sir," she nodded again.

"I must say, if you do keep this up then I may have some more jobs for you. There is the case of some of the most protected hybrids in the world and you understand how hard it may be to get a hold of them, so if you managed to kill the Fire Lord, Hiashi, Kazuo the Great, and Chiasa Yang Wu, then who knows who else you can kill? You have truly mastered the art of mental manipulation, so your skills are very valuable to us. You take care," he finally finished, ushering her out of the stone tomb. "I will be in touch with you soon enough."

'-'

This was a really short chapter, I know, and I also know it's lame but I didn't want to sound too rushed so I'm saving most of the stuff for chapter three. So this is it for now. I will update again soon and remember I have a deviant art page. There's a link on my profile so take a look. Peace out peeps.


	4. Surreal Reality

Disclaimer: The following chapter is entirely fictitious. Any similarity to the history of any person living or dead is entirely coincidental and unintentional, except when specifically noted otherwise in the cast and crew credits. All celebrity voices are impersonated and no celebrities have endorsed any aspect of this fic.

Chapter Three: Surreal Reality

'-'

"And I've sent a messenger hawk to the nearest embassy in Eikando to clear out a room for you," the assistant checked off his list in the cart. "It's about a couple of meters away from the shrine so we can go there first thing in the morning."

"What about the coroner's office?" Zuko asked, staring out at the rain hitting the window of his carriage. "Is that adjacent to the hotel?"

"Not really," the assistant frowned. "It's some ways away, but it is supposed to be nearby. I mean, it's in the vicinity otherwise they wouldn't have her. But you have palanquin bearers at the ready, so you don't have to walk." The assistant stopped talking as he realized Zuko was not paying attention to him. "Sir," he said, "if you don't mind me asking, who was this girl? You've been looking for her for a while from what I've been told and now all of a sudden… well, who exactly was she?"

"I knew her a long time ago," Zuko mumbled. "Back when I was hunting the Avatar. My uncle invited her onto our ship when we were staying in Engoku. She helped me catch the Avatar, but she had a lot of problems. She wasn't like by many so I told her she could be my wife. She'd be able to have as much protection as she needed but I don't know what happened. I think she ran away before I could get her answer."

"My guess is she was trying to protect you," the assistant shrugged. "If she was hated as much as you implied she was then she would've been killed even as your queen. Hell, if you liked her that much she would have made a better Fire Lady than Marukai. That's why I hate arranged marriages. And I think you'd have been happier." The assistant scribbled a few notes down and continued to talk. "You must've been very heartbroken when you found out about her. I'm sorry for your loss."

"Don't be sorry," Zuko muttered with his face pressed to the window, "you didn't know her."

"I'm pretty sure she was a decent person if you liked her so much," the assistant replied. "The look on your face when the priestess told you… I've never seen you like that before. What was she like?"

"She promised me she would get me home," Zuko sighed. "And she kept her promise. I wish she could have lived it with me."

"I'm sure she wanted to, but she probably didn't want to hurt you," the assistant tried to convince Zuko. "Why don't you sleep, sir? It's getting late and we still have three hours until we get to Eikando." Zuko did not feel like sleeping but the stress was draining him of his energy. His eyes began to feel heavy and before he knew it he was drifting off…

"_Zuko, I'm so sorry," Hiashi laughed at him while relaxing on his shikifuton. "I just had so many things to do."_

"_But I thought you were dead?" Zuko asked, placing his hand gingerly on her head._

"_Oh, I was, but it was a mistake," she smiled. "So I'm alive now." She stood up and grabbed a pipe several feet above her with ease. "But the Resistance is still after me, though. They might have to kill me again." The sky outside was quickly darkening and a grey Hyroki was running on the floor underneath her. _

"_Don't worry about the Resistance," Zuko laughed as he walked over to her. "I'm the Fire Lord. All I have to do is tell them to stop and I can get rid of them."_

"_But can I get my dad back?" she asked cheerfully. "And my mom?"_

"_Sure," he promised. "I can give you everything you want."_

"_Well, I wish I'd known that earlier!" she cried. "Then I could have kept my stuff!"_

"_I'll get you new things!" Zuko smirked. "After all, the new Fire Lady deserves everything she wants."_

"_Oh, you're so sweet," Hiashi smiled. She let go of the pipe and let herself float to the floor. "But did you tell the Resistance that? Because they're watching me."_

"_They're watching you?" Zuko frowned. "Right now?"_

"_Of course," she replied. "They're always watching me. Didn't you know that? I thought I told you?"_

"_No, you didn't!" Zuko snapped. "They shouldn't be watching you like this! That's rude! Don't they trust you?"_

"_Of course they don't," Hiashi smiled wickedly. "Why should they trust a mudblood?" The reddened figure of Hiashi began to darken in color into a black shadow, engulfing the room in its darkness. _

"_What did you do with Hiashi?" Zuko snarled at the shadow, but it did not respond, simply continuing to grow bigger. "Answer me!" he continued to snarl but again it did not respond._

"_Sir," someone said distantly, which only angered Zuko even more._

"_Give me Hiashi back!" Zuko barked at the shadow. "Someone's calling me and I need to go! You give her back! I could help her! Why would you do this to me?"_

"Sir," Zuko heard his assistant whisper distantly, "Sir, we're here. The keeper wants to show you to your room." The lights from the hotel blinded Zuko slightly. He wiped off the condensation that stuck to his face when it was up against the glass and look outside the cart to see his assistant holding open an umbrella for him. "Are you okay, sir?" the assistant asked.

"I'm fine," Zuko answered curtly, stepping out of the carriage and onto the wet earth. "Where are the palanquin bearers?" he asked rudely when his shoes were covered in mud.

"Sorry, sir," his assistant apologized, "but unfortunately they won't be here until later. But it's a short walk." And it was, but Zuko was still annoyed to have to walk in the mud.

"Welcome to the Wangfujing Grand Plaza," the hotel keeper smiled when they approached the front desk. "I am the owner, Wang Fujing." The owner frowned as he saw Zuko stop with no one else but the help. "I am sorry, but I thought you would be traveling with your family?"

"No," Zuko answered curtly.

"Fire Lord Zuko would appreciate it if you did not mention his wife or her child in his presence," his assistant said quickly. The host looked at them funny, but led them up to the room. It seemed to Zuko that everything after his journey went by like a blur. He was led to his luxurious room clad in white, his assistant made sure everything was situated and as quickly as everything happened he was alone again, only to absorb the reason he was there.

_Hiashi's dead_, he sighed, throwing his coat on the floor carelessly, then himself on the raised king sized bed. _She's dead after eight years. She was murdered… stabbed and poisoned and no one seems to know who did it. But I know who did. It was the Resistance, no doubt. It's always them. How do I find such elusive people?_

_Or maybe it wasn't them. There were those girls from Engoku, or maybe Hykiru, or someone else in the Fire Nation that might have found her… How dare they! They can't do that to her! She was the kindest person I knew! She could have proved it to them if only they gave her the time of day! _

_I swear it, they won't get away with what they did to her! _

'-'

"Sir, are you ready to go?" his assistant pounded on the door. "The hotel has breakfast ready and the palanquin bearers are downstairs waiting for you. We were supposed to start _before_ sunup, not after! You need to hurry!" Despite his assistant's yelling, Zuko was already up and ready. It was a long night for him and even though he slept easily in the carriage he could not sleep at all in the bed he was given. Even though he was hungry, Zuko did not want to eat, so when he opened the door he shoved himself past his assistant and straight to the front desk where the escorts were waiting outside in the drizzle. "Sir, they have breakfast waiting for you," the assistant called after his boss. "It would be very rude to leave them like this!"

"Tell them to save it for later," Zuko snapped. "I want to leave now."

"Fine," the assistant growled, motioning to one of the hotel staff. "Are we going to the coroner's office or the temple first?" Zuko stopped walking and stood in the middle of the hall.

"I don't want to see her right now," he mumbled. "Or maybe I do, I don't know."

"You have until tomorrow before they cremate her, so I think we can go visit her first before we see the note Madam Hiashi left us."

"Madam Hiashi?" Zuko raised his eyebrow as his assistant caught up with him. "You don't even know her."

"Yes, but you have respect for her, so I assume I should as well." Zuko let out a small smile and led the way out of the hotel. "Fire Lord Zuko has decided to go to the coroner's office before we go to the temple," the assistant announced to the palanquin bearers. "It's not quite raining right now so we have about a twelve minute's walk to the coroner's office. Let's get him there as quickly as we can!" Zuko climbed inside and was quickly whisked to the coroner. "How long will you like to stay before we go to the temple?" the assistant asked through the curtains of the palanquin.

"I don't know yet," Zuko answered quietly. "I haven't seen her for eight years. And I'm going to see her… She's not going to be alive. I'm not sure if I'll recognize her."

"You know, I use to know this girl, her name was Ming and we were friends since childhood," the assistant said. "But then I moved to the city and I never saw her again for ten years. Then I saw her last month and I recognized her as if I saw her so many other times before. You don't forget faces, Fire Lord. You'll know it's her. And when you see her, you'll be at peace."

"I doubt it," Zuko muttered. The group arrived at the coroner's office and the rain had temporarily subsided for the time being.

"Hello, Fire Lord Zuko," the coroner greeted them at the entrance. "If you can please follow me I can show you to Maiden Shihong." To him it was Shihong, but to Zuko it was Hiashi. It was his Hiashi. "Right this way," the coroner smiled casually as if he was directing the Fire Lord to the nearest market. "Now I usually cremate the body two days after they bring it in, but they told me you wanted to take a look at it, so I had to freeze it a little longer. So forgive me, the body's a little blue." The man walked over to a blanket draped gurney and pushed it to the center of the grey room they were in. "She came in with a stab wound to the abdomen, but from what I saw she had traces of nightshade in her bloodstream. Though the stab wound would have killed her, I think the nightshade was the coup de grâce. Are you ready to see her?" Zuko took a deep breath and nodded slowly. The coroner smiled and gently pulled down the sheet to reveal the head of the person he once knew. Hiashi laid motionless on the gurney, her skin color reflecting the color of the metal she laid on. The scars that once covered her face were nicely healed and were barely noticeable, while her hair was black and choppy instead of long and red with the black ends like it use to be. It was her, but the waxy look of her made Zuko hesitate on deciding. "Is this the right person?" the coroner asked.

"Yes," Zuko swallowed. "That's her."

"Would you like some time alone?" the man asked. Zuko nodded slightly so the man left the two and closed the door behind him.

"Sir, I have to give you praise, she's kind of pretty," the assistant said quietly. "She would have made you happy."

"That doesn't matter now," Zuko mumbled. He walked up to the cadaver of Hiashi and stared at her. This could not be her. He was certain this was a different body in front of him.

"Sir, what are you doing?" the assistant hissed as Zuko placed his hands on her face and began to pry her eyes open. "You probably shouldn't be touching her body. She was poisoned and you can be poisoned by touching her."

"I want to make sure this is her," Zuko replied after checking one eye. "She had two different colored eyes and I want to make sure this was her. The body in front of him did. The eye on the left was gold and the other was green, just like Hiashi.

"Two colored eyes?" the assistant questioned. "But sir, nobody has two colored eyes. Well, my father said there are some, but that's only with…" The assistant stopped talking when he realized what he said. "Wait, is this… is this one of the daughters of Enjou? The mixed-bloods?"

"You, be nice to her!" Zuko snarled. "If you even say anything bad about her—"

"No sir, I was only twelve when I heard about her and her father getting killed," the assistant shrugged. "I really didn't care or even know what was going on or why they were killed so I never thought about it until now. I mean, she looks normal to me so I don't see why I would hate her. I am just really surprised that out of everyone out there you of all people would actually care about her."

"What, did you think I hated her?" Zuko asked quietly as he continued to stare at her lifeless body.

"Well, the probability of you not liking her were higher than the other," the assistant answered. "You are after all the Fire Lord and most would assume you disliked her. I only say that because your past relatives were not exactly tolerant of those who went against their belief system."

"I don't want to look at her anymore," Zuko growled, violently throwing the sheet back over her face. "Let's just go to the Temple and get this over with."

"Sir, if you want I can arrange it so that you can go to the cremation ceremony," the assistant suggested. "I think it would make you feel better."

"Let's just leave and we'll see what makes me feel better," Zuko muttered. The two of them left the room and to the front desk of the small building.

"Was there anything else you needed, Fire Lord Zuko?" the coroner smiled at the two of them. "Was that the person you came to see?" Zuko did not want to answer. He walked out of the building and back to his palanquin with his assistant behind him a while later.

"The cremation ceremony is tomorrow, Fire Lord," the assistant huffed when he caught up with him. "If you want to go, it's going to be at the temple."

"I said we'll see," Zuko grunted from behind the curtains. "I don't know if I want to go."

"But sir—"

"She left me and I'm just going to go to her funeral? I shouldn't be upset about this. I offered her everything she wanted and she turned it down!"

"I don't think she turned it down, sir—"

"She could have been protected. She could have lived. Instead, she decides to leave me and look what happened. And now she's dead! I can't say she doesn't deserve it."

"Fire Lord Zuko, you should never speak ill of the dead!" his assistant snapped. "I don't care how mad you are at her for turning down your proposal but that doesn't mean you can speak of the dead like that!"

"I'm the Fire Lord! I can speak however I want!" Zuko snarled through the curtains. "You have no right to be speaking to me like this!"

"I think I do, especially since smack talk about those who have already passed is not only bad luck but disrespectful. And I think you should know a thing or two about disrespect."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"You know how you felt when that Earth King came in yesterday demanding so much from you and basically taking advantage of the situation we're in!"

"That's different. I gave them what they wanted."

"I'm not even going to argue with you," the assistant finally sighed. "You go ahead and be mad. I know you're happiest when you're mad." The rest of the few minutes they walked in silence and for Zuko that was okay with him. He did not regret a single word he said because he knew it was true. As much as he was upset to see she had died he could not help but believe she could still be alive if she had accepted his offer.

_And now she's dead, so I guess we'll never know_. They arrived at the temple within a few minutes just before the rain began to pick up again. The palanquin bearers stopped to let the assistant ask one of the priestesses to direct them to the proper hut.

"You may want to ask Priestess Nobuko," Zuko heard the lady answered. "I don't know the maiden who was murdered and even if I did it is considered unsacred for anyone in the temple less than a priestess or a monk to be near the place where she died. You can find Priestess Nobuko in the Shrine right now. I think she may be sweeping."

"Of course she wouldn't know her," Zuko grumbled when they started moving again.

"Sir, this person we're looking for had two names, remember?" the assistant sighed. "We'll find the hut."

"Did you need something?" Zuko heard the familiar voice of the priestess he saw yesterday chime from in front of him.

"Yes, we're looking for the hut, Priestess," the assistant answered. "Can you lead us in the right direction?"

"Of course," the priestess replied and soon they were walking again.

"And you said she left a message behind for Fire Lord Zuko, would you happen to know where that is?" the assistant asked.

"Oh, I informed Fire Lord Zuko that it is actually written on the floor," the priestess responded. "I thought he might want to see it himself. I don't quite understand it, so I thought maybe he would." Zuko rolled his eyes. He knew this was only the beginning of his problems.

'-'

_The wall is going to keep writing every little thing that happens_, Kurogane thought to herself as she stared at the wall in front of her. The timeline the Resistance had construed continued making small engravings in the wall, every second something new was added. _If this is going to write down every event then isn't there a way to stop it? It knows when people die so there must be a way to delete a person's name._ The wall continued to write events in the small column, noting that someone in Omashu had moved houses or someone on Kyoshi Island had just given birth to a child. _How does it know if a person dies? It has to be a part of the mechanics._ She reached out over the name of one of the people she had to kill. _Kuzon's name_, she sighed. _I wonder if I can delete him_. She pressed her thumb over the name and bended a line through the stone. The wall continued writing but instead it wrote 'Kurogane tries to erase name from timeline.' "Damn it!" she hissed, bending the line out of the wall. Still, the wall wrote 'Kurogane fixes wall.' She furrowed her eyebrows and watched the wall continue to write. _It only says my name, but that's because I don't have a last name… The wall writes out full names, but if you only have a first name then that's all it can write… So if I kill three people with the same name as her children, can I stay under the radar?_

'-'

Yeah, I've decided to dub the secondary plot to Kurogane and her journey through the complex nature of the Resistance. Hope you enjoy that. NEHO, until next time… Also I need to update my DA page with more art. Also, I do request of meh OCs you may want to see. I still have a lot more pictures I want to scan in general… huh. So


	5. I Will Always Regret

Disclaimer: The following chapter is entirely fictitious. Any similarity to the history of any person living or dead is entirely coincidental and unintentional, except when specifically noted otherwise in the cast and crew credits. All celebrity voices are impersonated and no celebrities have endorsed any aspect of this fic.

Author's note: I'm updating a lot to sort of give this story some meat on its bones. Because right now I think it's lacking plot and excitement so I want to get into it more before I procrastinate in updating. So on we go with the story.

Chapter Four: I Will Always Regret

'-'

All the brown huts looked the same. There was a small path past the main temple that was gated off, like a small gated community just for the men and women who worked there. All the huts were small, only enough room for one person but they were all squished together on the large hill and a labyrinth of paths to the fifteen some hut which made it even more certain to Zuko that someone should have heard, if any, commotion within Hiashi's hut. The hill was much too steep and much too narrow for the palanquin bearers to carry him, so Zuko trekked uphill on foot to Hiashi's hut. "We're here, sir," the assistant sounded as they stopped at one of the huts midway into the hill. "The priestess said you may enter if you like." Indeed, Hiashi's house was surrounded, in front of one house, a neighboring hut to the side, another one behind the house, and a slightly larger hut across the path, behind them, that could not have been more than seven feet away. Despite only being killed a few days ago the place looked as if it had been abandoned for years. There was a small shrine set up at the front step with flowers, candles, prayer flags, wheels, and beads, and incense which had stopped burning due to the rain.

"You can stay for as long as you like, Fire Lord Zuko," the priestess bowed before unlocking the door. "We will probably burn the hut and rebuild it since it is unsacred to live in a house where someone died."

"Why?" the assistant asked.

"Because it is their home still," the priestess smiled. "But this is a temple with many people who need a hut, so normally we burn the hut so that no one else may live in it. But this is the first time someone was murdered. And she was so young, too." The priestess opened the door to allow Zuko and his assistant in. Despite being the early morning the room was dark from the rain clouds lingering above. The priestess lit an oil lamp in the space and soon the room was filled with a dim light. The room was in vast disarray, a clear sign of struggle. The bench that sat in the middle was pushed out of alignment while several shelves were broken, some of which held pottery since there were pieces of it scattered on the floor. And the worst of everything in the room was a large, dark brown trail that ran from between the bench and the wall to a spot next to a desk, where it spread out into a large stain puddle. "The message is over here," the woman said, motioning to the spot where the puddle had stained. Zuko walked forward while his assistant walked slowly behind him, but the lady continued to speak. "It is a bit hazy. The coroner suspects she wrote it after she was stabbed, but you can still make it out."

"She had a husband?" Zuko mumbled to no one in particular. The words he read sunk his heart lower into his chest.

"Yes, I guess," the priestess frowned. "I don't know who the other people are. She only mentions her son by name, but Kuzon is such a common name we can't exactly narrow it down." Zuko continued reading the last part:

_And to Zuko, I'm glad you never found me._

His heart sank lower into his chest. _She was glad I never found her_, he noted. _Well to hell with her then—_

"What is that she crossed out?" the assistant suddenly asked.

"Oh, that?" the woman almost exclaimed. "Well, it was so shaky we were unsure if she was trying to write something, but it looks like she wrote…"

"'I will always regret'?" the assistant said slowly. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"We don't know, she crossed that out," the woman sighed. "That's why we asked you to come here. We already went to the other Zukos in the neighboring towns, but there weren't that many. You were the last Zuko we decided to check and it turns out we go the right one."

_I will always regret what? Why would she cross that out if she was glad I never found her? What did she regret?_

"You can ask Ichiko Yahzi," the priestess said to them midst Zuko's thoughts. "She and Shihong were very close to each other so she may know more about her if you would like to talk to anyone."

"Fire Lord Zuko, would you like to go?" his assistant asked. Zuko snapped himself out of his trance and shot his head up.

"Sure," he answered quickly, unsure of what he was answering yes to.

"Her hut is across the way," the woman smiled. "She or any of her roommates should let you in." The two followed the woman across the small dirt road to the hut that was several feet in front of Hiashi's. "Ichiko Yahzi? Ichiko Sukori? Ichiko Anjali? Is anyone in?" The sound of footsteps slowly approached the door followed by the popping of several locks.

"Yes, Priestess Nobuko?" a tanned girl in a white hakama and haori answered the door.

"Hello, Ichiko Anjali, is Ichiko Yahzi in?" the priestess smiled. The girl nodded and directed them inside the small hut. In the corner of the small living room was a teen girl crying in the corner. She was dressed as the other girl and she had the same dark skin tone and chocolate brown hair. "Ichiko Yahzi," the priestess said as calmly as she could, "Fire Lord Zuko would like to have a word with you. The priestess gestured to the two of them and left the house to let them speak in private.

"What did you need to know?" the girl named Yahzi sniffed, wiping the tears from her eyes.

"How did you know her?" Zuko asked curtly.

"Well," the girl coughed to clear her throat, "Shihong and I—"

"Hiashi," Zuko interrupted roughly. Yahzi looked at him with wide eyes.

"Pardon?" she whispered.

"That wasn't her name," he grumbled. Yahzi held her stare but narrowed her eye.

"So you already know," she said monotonously. Now it was Zuko's turn to narrow his eyes.

"So you know who she really is?" Zuko gasped.

"Yeah, I use to live on Engoku," Yahzi answered, now suddenly professional. "We were in the Youkyou gang together."

"An ichiko who use to be in a gang?" the assistant smiled. "You don't look like a girl who would be in a gang."

"Well it doesn't matter now," Yahzi bleakly smiled. "I barely made it out. I was in it before Hiashi was."

"But you're young now," Zuko stated. "How old were you when you decided to join the gang?"

"I didn't want to join," Yahzi said quietly. "My father left my mother before I was born and my mother left us when I was six. All I had was my brother, but he was addicted to crystals. He sold all we had for drugs and it got to the point where we had no more stuff. So he sold me to Sureiyaa."

"Your brother sold you?" the assistant gasped, but Zuko was unfazed.

"That's how life is in Engoku," Yahzi shrugged. "When you're sold into the gang as opposed to joining yourself you're seen as property. I had to do whatever I was told to do and if I didn't I was beaten. Which that meant I was… well, I was… um… how you say… _victimized_ by the men's gang. Hiashi was the only one who protected me. Nobody knew who she really was but I did. She didn't know that I knew, though."

"How did you find out?" the assistant asked, but again, Zuko seemed unconcerned.

"Her eyes, obviously," she replied bluntly. "There were so many interracial couples and many more interracial children on Engoku, probably hundreds, maybe thousands, but they were all from Water and Earth people, never Fire Nation and something else. It would have been a lot easier for her had her dad and mom had brown eyes or even grey so when she was born it would look normal, but it was the green that gave it away. Still, the two different eyes was usually a sign of mixed heritage. I mean, she was open with us that she was a firebender, but she hid the green eye all the time. I saw it by accident once and I never said anything. Then Sureiyaa found out and beat her out of the gang, then I think she killed her brother Kyyoku for dating Hiashi, and then she sold the information to these two Fire Nation people. I was sold a little while after that because I was close to her."

"Well how did you end up here?" the assistant asked since Zuko was not asking any question. It was clear to him that his boss was not interested in anything the girl was saying as he was still mad at Hiashi for turning down his proposal, but he was sure these were the questions he should be asking.

"That was about a year ago," she frowned. "I told you I was… well I ended up… pregnant and one of the guys got mad so he stabbed me. I just ran away after that. I lost the child and from what I understand I can't have children anymore. I figured this was the safest place for me to be. I was here for a while and then four months ago Hiashi came under the name of Shihong. From what I understood she said she needed to protect her family so she came here."

"Why would she say she's glad I never found her?" Zuko suddenly asked quietly. Yahzi jumped when he spoke but she contracted her eyebrows in thought.

"I don't know," she answered honestly. "She never made mention of you or even said she knew you. I mean if anyone mentioned you she would just smile and nod but that was about it, nothing out of the ordinary. I guess if she was glad you never found her it would be because she didn't want you hurt. From what I understood she didn't even tell her family where she was going. She said no one knew she was there, and that she told her family she was leaving but didn't tell them where she was going."

"Why does everyone keep saying that?" Zuko snarled, jumping to his feet. "Everyone keeps saying she ran away because she wanted to protect me. That's ridiculous!"

"No, not really," Yahzi growled. "Hiashi was very protective of people she liked. I don't know if you saw it, but I did, and maybe that's because I was one of those people she liked! So I would appreciate it if you didn't say it was ridiculous! She saved me a lot. She protected me and I wasn't even related to her. There were a lot of people she went out of her way to protect and maybe you were one of them. She was who she was and in this world it's very dangerous so she had to distance herself."

"I'm leaving," Zuko growled as he glided to the door. "You, come." The assistant scowled but nodded slightly.

"You take care, Ichiko Yahzi," he smiled at her. "If you need anything we are more than willing to help." Yahzi smiled back and wiped the rest of the tears that streamed down her cheek. "Why do you have to be so callous, sir?" he snapped when they finally exited the hut. "I don't know this woman but I think her friend has a point."

"I don't care," Zuko mumbled, shooting past the umbrella his assistant handed to him and straight for the gates. "She should have married me. She would still be alive if she did. She wouldn't have to go to some damned temple in order to protect herself."

"Sir, I think you got enough information for today," the assistant tried to convince him. "Why don't we go back to the hotel—"

"Pack everything, we're leaving," Zuko said curtly.

"Sir, does that mean you don't want to go to the cremation ceremony?" the assistant queried slowly.

"If this girl is so adamant that Hiashi is protective of people she cares about I want to hear this from someone who never liked her," Zuko answered. "Get everything from the hotel: we're going to Engoku."

'-'

_I know there's someone in here that knows how to surpass the system_, Kurogane thought to herself as she entered the headquarters for the Resistance. _If I can figure out what's making the wall write, then I can remove myself from existence. But how?_

"Darja!" Kurogane called to a silver haired woman when she stepped into the small office in the back. "Darja, are you busy?" The silver haired woman had the same violet eyes as hers as did everyone else in the training facility. She too was dressed in purple like everyone else only she wore a black apron to match the black mask she wore over her mouth and the black kerchief she wore on her head. She stood in the back behind a curtain where three metal beds sat perpendicular to the wall.

"Don't bend for a few days, Phong Hai," the lady smiled as she drew the water she was using and placed it in the bowl next to her. "If High Master Keme finds out you're not working he'll kill you."

"I know," the man smiled. He hopped off the table and left the office.

"Darja," Kurogane repeated, "can I talk with you for a moment?"

"Let me wash my hands," Darja nodded. "Come with me, you can talk with me in the back room."

"That's the thing," Kurogane frowned, following her to the back where more beds were, "there are more people back here and I was sort of hoping I could talk to you in private."

"Oh, silly Kuro," Darja laughed as she washed her hands. "To do that we'd have to go outside and I have too much work here. They're practicing and you know I'm going to have to revive a lot of people, heal the others, and make sure the ones that are dead get out of the morgue and are cremated properly. I don't have time to be walking up that tunnel so whatever you want to say you can ask me here."

"Well, you've been here longer than me, so I thought you might know more about the timeline than I do," Kurogane said slowly. "Like, how does it work exactly?"

"What exactly are you planning?" Darja suddenly snapped. "If you want to compromise something I swear I will turn you in myself—"

"No, that's not it at all," Kurogane lied. "I mean, you know I killed Hiashi the other day, and—"

"Oh, I remember her," Darja grinned. "You did a very good job. Better than I did."

"Then you did- excuse me?" Kurogane exclaimed. "What exactly do you mean?"

"Oh, she was one of the elusive ones," Darja rolled her eyes. "A lot of the mudbloods were easy to find, but magbloods aren't as popular. I went through a lot of hell on Engoku, being around so many mudbloods and not being able to do anything about them because I was there to kill that magblood, it's really frustrating, you know?"

"I could imagine," Kurogane muttered.

"Anyways," Darja inhaled, "I got someone to convince her to come to me to get rid of her earthbending abilities, and I told her some phony BS about me being able to give her a tattoo with this ink that can neutralized the earthbending in her. But the ink was laced with a chakra blocker which inevitably can kill you. And it was working, but then the damn Youkyou bitch had to sell her out to the Fire Nation, which screwed me over because the stupid ink can't be exposed to heat. So what was supposed to kill her just fucked her up for a bit." Darja rolled her eyes and dried her hands on her apron. "I'm sorry, I digress. I was twenty-six, stupid, thought I'd get creative, but I failed miserably. I'm just mad is all. Anyways, what was your question?"

"Um, yeah," Kurogane coughed. "Well, I was just curious because I killed… her and while walking over here I got curious so I stopped by the timeline and I saw my name there next to hers and it got me wondering how the whole wall worked, and I guess I was wondering if you knew how it worked." Kurogane followed Darja into the check-in station next to them while she filed her patient's file.

"I don't know what to tell you," Darja shrugged. "Yeah, I've been here a while, but I don't know much about the wall. You might want to ask someone who's been here longer than me." Darja pulled the face mask covering her mouth and turned to Kurogane. "You can try Ihsan, he might know more than me."

"Ihsan?" Kurogane repeated. "Who's he?"

"Oh, he's the really old man upstairs who does the firebending training," Darja replied. "He's been here for about fifty years so he probably knows more than I do." She wiped her hands on her apron then looked up at her friend. "I wish I could tell you more, but I guarantee you already know what I do, so it'd be pointless. Now I have to get going, the waterbenders are almost done with their training and I am going to have many veins to reset and a lot of dehydrated and confused people to care for, so if you'll excuse me I need to get ready." Darja twiddled her fingers in a wave and left the check-in station to the room they were just in to check on her patients.

"Well, no, but wait!" Kurogane called back to her. "When do the firebenders get out of their lesson?"

"I think they already did," Darja shouted back from a patient's bed. "This guy has hypothermia and the bed across has a high fever, so I think they finished earlier, go ahead and see if he's in his office." Kurogane frowned in disbelief but did not ask her friend anymore questions.

_I don't know where the firebending teacher's office is. It's probably upstairs, but there are no offices upstairs… well not including the morgue and the IVF lab… _She sighed in frustration but decided to leave the small doctor's office. _I didn't even know teachers were given their own offices… Makes me wonder if it's hidden just like Keme's office. I guess I could reach him tomorrow after the lesson, but—_

"Look, children!" a voice called Kurogane out of her mind. "It's one of my old pupils, Kurogane! She turned around only to realize she was walking past the earthbending stage. Up on the training stage were probably twenty children with an elderly man who she remembered from long ago.

"Teacher Fengge, so nice to see you again," Kurogane bowed.

"Don't be bashful, my students would like to meet you," the old man beckoned. "I told them all about you and how you made Resistance history by assassinating the Fire Lord!" The children began to mutter with excitement amongst each other after the words left his mouth. "Why don't you come up and give the children a demonstration? You were my best student after all. She was able to master all three parts of bending, element, analogous, and body quicker than any of my students!" The children began to squeal but Kurogane just smiled.

"I couldn't possibly," Kurogane tried to say nicely. "You have much to teach them—"

"Nonsense!" he laughed. "There's nothing to learning like a great demonstration! Come! They want to see!" The children cheered her on to come and demonstrate what made her so special.

"Fine," she finally sighed. She walked up the steps and opened the gate to the ring and stepped inside. "What am I demonstrating?"

"I think you can teach one of my pupils a lesson," the old man said cheerfully. "Hibai, go ahead and show Miss Kurogane why you think you are so good at earthbending." A boy stood up in the crowd of children and made his way to the front. He could not have been more than twelve since he still had his brown eyes, and brown hair that covered them. "Hibai thinks he is good enough at earthbending that he does not need to practice his forms or go to tutoring, so maybe you can show him how much more he needs to learn." The boy puffed some air at his bangs to push them out of the way and flexed his fingers. "Maybe she can teach you a thing or two."

"I can kick her ass," the boy replied in a slight growl. Kurogane raised her eyebrow.

"Are you ready, Miss Kurogane?" the man smiled. Kurogane took a deep breath. She did not know why she felt nervous. Maybe because this was a child she was battling. Maybe because this kid was probably as good as he claimed to be. Mostly to her, though, she was tempted to go easy on him but to do so would make her look bad, especially if he ended up beating her. And if eventually she did bring herself up to her real skills it may be harder than she thought. But of she started at her real level, she could kill him. She got into her beginning stance and faced the kid who looked as if he could care less. "On three, ready?" The man got in between them and held his hand up. "One… two… three!" He dropped his hand and quickly got out of the way to allow them to fight.

_Standard_, Kurogane though to herself when she saw the boy flex his arm and project two rocks from the ground. _He's still learning. He doesn't know anything about the other two branches of earthbending. And yet he so cocky. He needs to learn but I can't kill him. That'd be too easy._ She dodged his shots one at a time, simply keeping the young boy at bay for the moment. His attacks were predictable, just simplistic earthbending after earthbending moves. She rolled her eyes when he kept trying his best to defeat her with amateur moves. _Let's end this now._ She curled her fingers in and held her palms up, and swung her hands outward and inwards in a big circle, pushing her palms to the outsides. In a split second the boy dropped the rocks he was holding and crumbled over in pain, his arms handing at his side like limp noodles.

"And that's end!" the old man exclaimed! "Zelai, please take Hibai to Miss Darja to have his arms placed back in their sockets." The little girl in the front jumped to her feet and helped the squirming boy on the floor to his feet. "Now I expect to see you at tutoring today, yes Mister Hibai?" The boy nodded vigorously, but kept his head down to keep his tears of pain hidden. "Thank you so much for gracing us with your presence, Miss Kurogane," the old man said with unadulterated cheer. "Please, stop by any time. We would love to see more demonstrations from you. You are after all a celebrity." Kurogane bowed to her old teacher and smiled sheepishly.

"Thank you," she nodded. "I'll keep that in mind." Instead of going down the stairs she hopped the fence and landed hard on her feet. _Because I guess pulling children's arms out of their sockets is a great way to teach a lesson…_

'-'


	6. Foreboding

Disclaimer: The following chapter is entirely fictitious. Any similarity to the history of any person living or dead is entirely coincidental and unintentional, except when specifically noted otherwise in the cast and crew credits. All celebrity voices are impersonated and no celebrities have endorsed any aspect of this fic.

Chapter Five: Foreboding

'-'

Zuko sat on the recliner in his room while several chambermaids packed his suitcases. Hiashi's cremation was yesterday and he had barely arrived that morning, so his eyes were debating whether or not to stay open or to close themselves. He wondered why he was going to Engoku in the first place seeing as how Hiashi never gave him the time of day to accept his marriage proposal. She could burn in hell for all he cared. He was the Fire Lord. No one said no to him. Ever.

"Zuko," the cacophonous voice called from the doorway, "why are the chambermaids packing things for you? Are you going somewhere and you forgotten to tell me?"

"I didn't forget to tell you," Zuko replied simply. "I chose not to."

"Well, I think I should go to," Marukai said, strolling in and flopping herself on the chaise lounge across from him. "You think you're the only one who needs to get away from everything?"

"I'm not going on vacation!" Zuko snapped. "I'm conducting very important business, business _you_ almost made me miss! I think I need some time away from you anyways."

"As if you're a meadow, Zuko," Marukai groaned. "You've done nothing but bitch and moan to me since we've met, which was, what… fifteen-ish years ago I want to say. And why? I was a pretty girl! You'd think you'd like me but you didn't."

"My mother left us unexpectedly and you expect me to like you right away?" Zuko mumbled. "You're pathetic."

"Oh, boohoo, Zuko," she rolled her eyes. "So your mother ran away, big whoop. At least she might be alive somewhere. My mother died of cancer and you don't think me and Hykiru weren't sad?"

"That's right, you're related to him," he growled under his breath.

"And besides, I'm the only one who's still alive in my family," she sighed histrionically, "but you don't see me caring. My dad did say survival of the fittest and Hykiru was a pathetic drunk. You know it's kind of ironic that me and your sister were so much alike and you were like my brother, but somehow your sister was the one who fell. And it's sad, really, because I liked your sister. I think she would have made a great Fire Lord or at least a great aunt to Guangli."

"She would have been a terrible influence," he stated. "She would turn him into a monster. You wouldn't be able to handle him."

"You underestimate me," Marukai scoffed loudly, brushing a strand of her sandy brown hair behind her. "If I could handle a whole troop of men and women then I think I can handle a child."

"That's beside the point," Zuko replied. "I wouldn't want to deal with him. Not now and certainly not with Azula's influence."

"Be nice to your heir," Marukai laughed. "He's the only one you've got." Zuko bit his lip and contracted his face.

"Can you ladies leave?" Zuko said stiffly to the chambermaids. "I need to speak to her alone." The ladies exchanged concerned looks with each other but bowed respectfully and left the room, closing the door behind them. "What have I told you about calling that kid my son?" Zuko said in a menacing but quiet voice. "I've done my best to keep you at an arm's length and yet you still like to tell everyone that that is my child. Why is that? Do you just hate me that much or are you so desperate to stay?"

"Psh, you're such a drama queen," she rolled her eyes. "I didn't call him your son, I called him your heir. There's a significant difference. And he is technically your only heir right now until you find another wife, which you won't since you're so introverted. You're stuck with me until you move on or I do. And since it's more likely that I'll move on before you let me tell you this: I don't plan on leaving my post. I've been dying for this power for a long time and I'm not about to give it up."

"What power?" Zuko scoffed. He pushed himself to his feet and walked to the window. "I don't think I've ever given you any kind of power. I've always made sure you've never had a say in the business of running this country, so that should be all the more reason to go."

"Zuko, we've been married for five years, four months, two weeks, six days and five of the most dreadful hours. I think I can tough it up for a while longer until you let me do something, anything." She sighed histrionically again and slouched in her chair.

"You've been keeping count of how long we've been married?" he queried.

"You know how sometimes something horrible starts and you keep checking the hourglass to see how long it's been but the thing just won't go fast enough? Yeah, it's one of those moments." She rolled on her side to face Zuko and pouted her lip. "Do you seriously not find me attractive? I have to ask, are you gay? Because if you are, I'm totally okay with that. Girls love gay guys. We're their best friends."

"How dare you even say that!" Zuko barked at her, forcing the candles in the room to explode. "God, right now I am fighting the urge to kill you with my bare hands!"

"Oh, please," she sneered. "You wouldn't kill me if I was an ant sitting on your leg. You've been giving me the death threat for years and have yet to do something about it. And to be honest, that's just pathetic. Oh! And before I forget, I wanted to tell you we need to find a new tutor for Guangli. His old one can't tutor him anymore. I was just wondering if you can have someone get him one."

"No," he said curtly. "He doesn't even need a tutor."

"Yes he does!" she exclaimed. "Many scholars and teachers believe children need tutoring before they enter elementary so they can develop the necessary cognition to function in school."

"Function in school? He has two years left, don't worry about it."

"Yes, but I think he's making progress," she tried to convince him. "He's very gifted and all we need to do is continue with his tutoring—"

"What is this 'we' stuff?" Zuko growled. "I don't have to do anything with him. He's your responsibility."

"Yes, but it takes a village to raise a child," she snapped. "And you'd see how smart he really is if you paid some attention to him once and a while."

"He's three years old and he calls you 'twat,'" he stated. "Nothing he says is a real word, so I don't think your tutoring thing is doing anything productive."

"Well maybe his tutor should stop sucking, now shouldn't she?" She rolled her eyes and slouched some more on the chaise lounge. "She's a real bitch anyways. Besides, she can't tutor him anymore, which is why I need you to get someone to find him another one."

"Well, forget it," he replied. "I'm not going to help raise your child. If you want to get him a tutor so damn badly then you can do it yourself. It's not like you don't have the resources to do so."

"Fine, I'll find him a new tutor when you leave tomorrow." She brushed her hair past the beauty mark near her eye and sighed histrionically. "So can you at least tell me where you're going? You're being such a rude son of a bitch but I'm still your wife. I need to know where you're going."

"I don't like you so I don't have to tell you anything," Zuko simplified. "You know I never wanted to marry you and yet you continue to rub this in my face. If anything this is just making me despise you more."

"Fine, don't tell me," she groaned and rolled herself over. "I can always go to the witch up the mountain. She's been pretty good when it comes to these kinds of things."

"Okay, what the hell is up with all this talk about a damn witch!" Zuko exclaimed. "Everyone keeps talking about this damn witch and it's annoying! Let me tell you now, there is no such THING as witchcraft!"

"That's because you've never been to Iboni," she threw her wrist at him. "She's really good at what she does, unless she doesn't like you. Then she conveniently can't find your future."

"Damn it," Zuko snarled under his breath. "I would think out of everyone I know, at least _you_ would be the most sensible and believe everything she said was a lie. What the hell happened to you?"

"I went to check her out, that's what happened," she said curtly. "I went in with a sensible amount of skepticism and she told me a lot of things, some even about my future. And some of it has come true so far. So you tell me if she's right or not. You can only get your own opinion if you go see her yourself."

"You're stupider than I thought," he said to her face. He grabbed a cloak from his bureau and tossed it on the bed next to his bags. Marukai swung her legs in a fan kick and sprung to her feet.

"I don't care what you say," she exclaimed, shaking her dress into place. "Come with me, you're going to go see her."

'-'

He could not for the life of him figure out why he let the woman he hated the most talk him into going somewhere he would probably end up hating her even more for. It was ridiculous to him that he was currently in the carriage up to the base of the mountains to meet with a woman who supposedly was the greatest psychic in the Fire Nation. Something horrible would happen, but he was unsure of what.

"Just walk up to the door," Marukai nodded to him. "She should be home."

"I am not doing this," Zuko growled. "I swear—"

"You swear a lot of things," she groaned, crossing her legs dramatically. "God damn it, for once in your life just trust me. I _really_ believe you can get some use out of her." She raised her eyebrow at him but still maintained a stare. Zuko held her stare, clenching his teeth and debating whether or not to trust her. The door to the carriage opened and Zuko stepped out, not daring to remove his stare with the sandy-haired demon. He finally released his gaze when he approached the door of the black and rickety looking hut he did not want to enter. He knew there was no such thing as witchcraft and knew even if there was, meddling in the affairs of the devil would not be any better. Still, if he did not enter he would never hear the end of it from the wretched woman who brought him there in the first place. He heaved a heavy sigh and knocked once on the door only to find it swing slightly open.

"Oh please enter, Fire Lord Zuko," a woman's voice cracked from inside. "I have been awaiting your arrival." Zuko frowned but entered the dark shack anyways. The interior was of course darker than the outside and had the familiar scent of roses and lavender burning in the corner. There was only a small light sitting on a table in the corner where several suspicious looking orbs and pendulums sat neatly next to it. "I saw you approaching in your carriage a few hours ago," the same creepy voice sounded off in the corner of the room. "I made some honeybush tea, your favorite, with some vanilla and orange peel for flavor, just the way you like it."

"Honeybush tea is not my favorite," Zuko glared as he pulled up a chair and sat down at the desk.

"It is your preferred tea," the woman smirked. "As a firebender it strengthens your chakra and empowers you, which is why you prefer it over any other tea." Zuko narrowed his eyes as the woman came into focus and poured him a cup. The woman had scary grey eyes and stringy black hair and skin much more pale than anyone he ever met, in attire that was much too revealing. Indeed she was a witch. "So you are here to ask about my niece?" the woman said suddenly when she was finished with Zuko's cup.

"Your niece?" Zuko asked. "What are you talking about?"

"My niece, Hiashi," she replied. "Her father was my brother, twelve years my senior. He was killed brutally by an admiral by the name of Zhao. Hiashi killed him herself on the day the comet arrived, did she not?"

"Yes, she did," Zuko answered, stifling his astonishment. "I was wondering if you can tell me anything about her."

"Well, that would depend," the woman sighed. She whisked herself behind her desk and sat in the chair behind it, curling her claws underneath her chin. "Would you believe anything and everything I say?"

"That will all depend on what you say," Zuko said curtly. The woman smirked playfully and shifted an orb to the center of the table.

"Do you know a woman named Mai?" she asked casually. "I see a woman in your future, with black hair. You knew her from your past and you wanted a relationship with her." Zuko scowled at the woman.

"Where did you get the name from?" he asked her sharply.

"The orb never lies," she answered simply. "You are going on a journey after this, are you not? Your wife will not be accompanying you; I recommend you invite this woman with you."

"Are you suggesting I cheat on my wife?" Zuko asked. He wanted to laugh because as much as the thought crossed his mind so many times he never actually had a woman to cheat on Marukai with.

"Well it is not like she is not having an affair," she said. "Your wife has been cheating on you for a while now. In fact your child is not your own. I suggest you go to the man who your wife is cheating on you with and free him of his obligations to you."

"Obligations, what obligations?" Zuko asked. "Do I know this person?"

"Well of course," she nodded. "This is another person from your past. You met him once on an evening in which you learned something dark about the past of Hiashi. The man feels obliged to allow you to keep your wife so that you may bear a son for the nation. Though he wishes to be with your wife he restrains himself. If you tell this man he is free to have her then you are free to be with the woman you want to be with." Zuko scrutinized the woman's face as she stared deeply into the glowing orb.

"You're lying to me, aren't you?" he asked her. The woman raised an eyebrow but laughed lightheartedly.

"Do you really think that I, Iboni the Wise, would lie to you? I do not lie; I merely tell what the orb says. Or if that does not satisfy you, I also have…" She bent over and set a deck of cards on the table, "tarot cards, pendulum readings, palm readings, I Ching, face readings, Zi wei dou shu, Bazi, maybe your tea leaves may reveal a future similar to what I just said. I have many more techniques if those do not work for you."

"How do I know you're not just bullshitting me?" Zuko growled. "There is such a thing as cold reading."

"How much more specific can I get?" she asked roughly. "The woman you are looking for, my niece? The daughter of my brother? I think I can tell you much about her."

"Hiashi never said anything about having an aunt, especially one that's a witch," Zuko snapped unintentionally. "And if you're so good at what you do, why didn't you go find your brother?"

"When you are as good as I am, you never have to meet people," the woman answered rudely. "Take Hiashi for example. She went from black hair to red and black to black again. She had two different colored eyes, the left from her father, the right from her mother, the mark of the hybrid. She joined a gang at age fifteen, was kicked out for who she was at age sixteen, had her father killed a couple of days later, and then you picked her up after. Gas leak, was it? You stayed at the City Court Inn where the innkeeper had a very blasé mien. You did not know who she was and nor she you. Would you like to know anything else?"

"Anyone could have known that," Zuko barked. "Tell me something no one could possibly know."

"How about her favorite tea?" she said, still calmly, but frustration ricocheted in her voice. "The Chai tea she had every morning whilst on your ship? With a hint of cow hippo milk and sugar? She certainly loved it cold; she would have it no other way. Or maybe the Lo Han Kuo tea she used to drink when she was stressed? Her father would give that to her every time she was upset or ill, so she adapted that into her routine. Now what else would you like to know? How about the relationship you had with her on your last days together? Or maybe how you have been relentlessly searching for her for the past eight years without success only to find her dead as Shihong in a temple in Eikando? Ask me anything, I'll be sure to answer."

"That was a lucky shot," Zuko growled. "Anyone could have guessed that. It's nothing but guess work!"

"What else would you like me to say, Fire Lord Zuko?" she asked stiffly. "Would you like me to get into more specific details? Because I can. I can tell you then, many people have told you about me and yet you insisted that what I do is nothing but a farce. Maybe you would have come to me sooner if you knew that I would tell you the exact place of Hiashi, or perhaps where your mother has been for the past fifteen years."

"Wait, what do you know about my mother?" Zuko asked quickly. The woman smiled under the candlelight and let out a soft laugh.

"How should I know?" she asked sarcastically. "I am nothing more than a guesser." He had made her upset, no doubt. And if Marukai was right then she would not give him any more information.

"I apologize," he said through his teeth. "What do you know about my mother? What did Hiashi mean in her note?" The woman continued to hold her maniacal stare, shifting her lips from side to side in debate.

"You will not believe a single word I say," she sighed. She stood up and began to usher Zuko out of her hut. "All I can say is that you will not like what you find. Stop looking now lest you hurt yourself on your quest." She shoved him out of the house and into the burning dim light of the outside world and slammed the door before he could protest.

'-'

Okay, admittedly, this may have been a little lame, but I'd like to think it's suspensful. NEHO, remember I still have a Deviant Art page, a link of whichis on meh profile page. I do character requests, so say you want to see what Guangli looks like, maybe Kurogane, or Darja, or the assistant, whoever you want to see, you can see them, just send me a review (or a PM, whichever one floats your boat.) I will be posting new pictures soon, I do have one of Toph I recently did. I thought it came ouit pretty good. Also, if any of you people reading this like my work (I don't know if you will) and want to see me drawing something elser, maybe you have a request not related to my story, or even Avatar at all, I can do it. Although it depends what. I'm not really good with animals, fyi, but I can probably try. I'm also looking for watchers. I am very unloved T-T. Well, until next time (possibly next week) Signing Off!


	7. The Art of Persuasion

Disclaimer: The following chapter is entirely fictitious. Any similarity to the history of any person living or dead is entirely coincidental and unintentional, except when specifically noted otherwise in the cast and crew credits. All celebrity voices are impersonated and no celebrities have endorsed any aspect of this fic.

Chapter Six: The Art of Persuasion

'-'

Zuko's assistant sat hunched over one of the chairs, his clipboard on the floor along with his ink pen and papers. "Sit up!" Zuko barked at him. "You look ridiculous!"

"I am SO sorry, Fire Lord Zuko," he coughed. "I just think it's hilarious you let Marukai talk you into going to that witch! I mean seriously! Of all people I would have _never_ thought you would go to a witch! It's freaking hilarious!"

"You said hilarious _twice_!" Zuko snarled. "For god sakes, get some new words in your lexicon!"

"Oh, I'm sorry, master," the assistant breathed, wiping a tear from his eyes. "I apologize for not having a capacious lexicon in which to converse with you with. I shall not speak another word until I have appropriate diction for the Fire Lord."

"You… you're ridiculous," Zuko grunted. "And what you just said didn't make any sense."

"You, sir, just do not know how to laugh at yourself," the assistant laughed. He sat up in the chair and straightened out his clothes. "I have to apologize, I just think that you going to a psychic is… well, how you say, 'out of character' for you? I-I don't see it happening."

"You don't understand!" Zuko sighed, throwing himself in the chair across from his assistant. "When I went to go see her she said things that were too specific. I didn't understand it."

"Of course she did," the assistant scoffed. "It's called cold reading, anyone can do it. For example, I see you have faced some hardship in your past. Did someone hurt you?"

"That's not what I'm talking about!" Zuko snapped. "I thought the same thing, but what she said was _too_ specific. She knew exactly how I felt about her, she knew too much about Hiashi. She even knew how she took her tea in the morning. And, she knew Marukai was cheating on me, and she knew who she was cheating with. And she told me if I let the guy be with her then I'd be absolved of her. I'm just not sure what to think about the whole thing."

"Well, I can tell you what I think," the assistant said. "I think… that this woman played you like a lute. You said Marukai has gone to her before, well maybe she fed the witch some information prior. All I'm saying is that you can't be too reliant on the information the witch gave you."

"That's the thing," Zuko muttered. "I've never told Marukai about Hiashi, so even if she did give her all the information, how would she know about that? Better question, I've never told Marukai about anything from my life before I had to marry her, so how would she know I was looking for her or what happened between the two of us? I don't know what to believe."

"Sir, I'm telling you, you can't believe everything a witch says, even if it's true," the assistant replied. "They're just B. you, that's how they get their money."

"I didn't pay her anything," Zuko said to him. "Marukai says that she doesn't charge so that way people take what she says more seriously. And she told me Hiashi's favorite tea. She told me exactly how she took it every morning. And she was right. Hiashi had the same thing every day. I saw her stand outside with a cup every morning, out on the front of the ship or somewhere in the corridors, sipping her Chai tea. The times I did see her she would put milk and just enough sugar in it for flavor. I would hear her glass clank sometimes as if there were ice in it, and there was. She'd eat the ice afterwards, saying it was a waste of water if she didn't. And every time we went back to the ship after we looked for the Avatar she would go to her room and make herself something to drink. And it was that Lo Han Kuo drink, the same drink that woman said. I don't know what to say."

"Sir, maybe she was just lucky," his assistant said more seriously. "I'm telling you, it was probably a fluke."

"I don't know," Zuko said under his breath. "Maybe it is, maybe it's not, but now I'll never know. Marukai said if I upset her then she'll never tell me anything I wanted to know. She said that I'm going to get hurt if I continue my journey, but she wasn't specific on what. I'm just wondering if I should be concerned."

"Don't even worry, sir," his assistant tried to convince him. "You'll be gone by tomorrow, so you don't need to concern yourself with what she said." Zuko thought to himself for a moment. The witch told him about Mai, how he should invite her along, but what if that was a joke? The woman was right about many things, so why would this be any different?

"You said something about a girl named Mai, didn't you?" Zuko said suddenly to his assistant.

"Pardon?" the assistant asked.

"You said something about a woman named Mai who—"

"Oh her," the assistant exclaimed as he suddenly remembered. "Yeah, she works in the I forget department, but I know where she is. What about her?"

"Go get her for me, will you? I need to ask her something." At first the assistant did not react to his boss's request, but he suddenly showed shock upon his face.

"Wait, I'm sorry, I think I have something ridiculous in my ear," the assistant said sarcastically. "What was that you asked me?"

"I said go get her for me," Zuko said roughly again through his teeth. "You heard me."

"Sir, that doesn't look good," his assistant said somberly. "Okay, I and everyone else in the palace is all for you tossing that whore of a woman you're married to out on the street and getting someone you actually like, but not everyone is going to see it that way. Why do you want to see her anyways?"

"That is none of your business," Zuko replied curtly "Just go get her for me, please."

"Fine," the assistant finally said reluctantly. "I will like it, but I won't be a part of it."

"You know that's a lie," Zuko scoffed.

"True, but I won't appreciate it," the assistant frowned.

"You know that is a lie, too!" Zuko shouted.

"Also, true," the assistant raised his eyebrow. "It's a conspiracy, it's an affair, it's insanity, but you need this." The assistant quickly bowed to Zuko and shot out the door. He looked to the door and back to the chair and decided to sit down. There was not much else he could do. The chambermaids were almost done packing for him and they were not to leave until tomorrow. He had not set foot on Engoku since the last time he was there with Hiashi. He remembered how the girls had tricked him off his ship so they could kill her and how foolish he felt when he discovered their infiltration. She told him countless times she did not want to return to the island, but he did not listen to her. He never listened to anything she said unless it had something to do with the Avatar. Still, Zuko could not help but think she had it coming.

_She should have known. She should have known her place._

"Knock, knock," a bored voice sounded from the door. Zuko shot his head up, unaware of how long it had been since he sent his assistant to fetch Mai. But sure enough there she was, leaning on the door frame with one eyebrow raised. Not much had changed about her since he had last seen her except that she had gotten taller and much more mature in appearance, but Zuko dared not to think of her in that way.

"Mai," he forced out with as much poise as he could muster, "it's nice to see you again."

"Okay, what gives?" she asked, finally walking into the room. "Your shrimpy assistant came running into my office with the stupidest of looks on his face saying you wanted to see me."

"Yes, I did," Zuko said stiffly. "I needed to ask you something."

"Well, what is it?" she said in a rush. "I have things I need to do." Zuko took a deep breath, but could not get himself to ask the question. He felt ridiculous, especially because he was asking her based off the prediction of a crazed woman who lived on the base of the mountain. It was ridiculous. "Look," Mai finally grunted, "if you're not going to say anything, can I—"

"I'm currently looking for someone and I need you to come," Zuko spat out. He wanted to slap himself. Nothing he said made any sense, only to those who knew exactly what he was talking about. Mai's face fell.

"Okay, I don't see you for almost ten years and all of a sudden you ask me to go on some trip with you to find someone? Does your wife even know about this?"

"Yes, she does," he lied. "And she is okay with it." Mai eyed him suspiciously, finally shaking her head.

"I'm sorry, but I have to say no," she answered.

"Wait, why?" Zuko snapped.

"Because that's kind of rude, don't you think?" she snapped back. "You don't talk to me for a decade and you expect me to just drop everything I have to go look for some person? I'm sorry, but I don't do that way with married men."

"Mai, wait!" Zuko called after her before she could leave the room. "Why won't you go?"

"Because," she growled viciously, "I don't know who you think I am, but I'm not a concubine." She slammed the door violently and left Zuko baffled.

"What are you staring at!" he barked at the maids who had stopped working to watch the whole ordeal. "I never told you to stop working!"

'-'

"Lady Mai, do you mind me speaking to you for a moment?" the assistant asked several minutes down the hall. Mai was storming down the hall, obviously frustrated with Zuko's request, and the assistant could see it.

"What do you want?" Mai snarled at him. "You already embarrassed me today as it is, can you just leave me alone?"

"Not exactly, no," the assistant frowned, taking a spot next to her and jogging to keep up. "You seem upset. Is something wrong?"

"I don't know who Zuko thinks he is, but he has some nerve. He thinks just because he's Fire Lord that that means he can do whatever he wants. I don't know why he would think I would be that kind of girl to—"

"Whoa, slow down there, Lady Mai," the assistant interrupted her. He grabbed her arm to stop her, but she did not approve. Out from her sleeve popped several red-tinted daggers in her free hand.

"Let go of me or see what happens," she snapped curtly. The assistant quickly let go of her arm as if it was fire but continued to talk to her.

"Look, I can tell you're pissed, but can you hear me out for a few seconds?" he asked nicely.

"You have two minutes before I lose interest," she replied harshly.

"Zuko doesn't want you as just a concubine—"

"You're losing your argument, shrimp—"

"It's You, and don't interrupt me," he said roughly. "Anyways, like I was saying, he doesn't want you as just a concubine, he was hoping for something better. Okay, not very many people know this, but Fire Lady Whore Marukai has been cheating on Zuko for years now. Everyone in the main sector knows it. She is a super bitch, you know? And the kid, what's-his-face Li, he's not Zuko's kid either. It's the other guy's. Now Zuko's been wanting to break it off with her, but he really can't do that unless he has another woman at the ready. See, the higher council's frown on single Fire Lords. No wife, no offspring, no deal, right? So you have to understand where he's coming from. And he's going to Engoku right now, and seriously, that's a really bad area and he's going to need all the protection he can get, so can you just come?"

"What even makes you think I care about Zuko?" she muttered under her breath.

"Ma'am, with all due respect, everyone knows about you and your feelings for Zuko," the assistant scoffed. "Oh, don't look surprised," he added when Mai's face glowed with embarrassment. "For future references, never tell anyone anything about your personal life, especially here because no one can keep secrets. And if it makes you feel any better, Zuko feels the same way."

"Look, I don't feel comfortable discussing this with you," Mai said bluntly. "I don't even know you."

"Of course you don't," the assistant shrugged, "but you know Zuko. And Zuko likes you; in fact, he has liked you for a while. But don't tell him I told you that because then he'll kill me. He doesn't know that many women, and he likes you. And let's face it, the Fire Nation's in the shit hole. It's been like that since the end of the war and he's doing the best he can but there's only so much he can do without asshole kings getting in the way. Please, just go with him. You want him, he wants you, the wife goes if you two hit it off, and you can be a made woman. And if you don't care about the money, then at least you get Zuko. Face it, you both want each other, so why fight it? And even if you don't want to get with him, you're going to get a five to six day paid vacation on the Fire Lord's exclusive yacht. Just go, see what happens, alright?" The two held a death stare that seemed to last an eternity. Mai bit the inside of her lip in thought as did the assistant, unsure of whether she would agree to go or not.

"Alright, fine," Mai finally sighed. "But no one better see me get on that ship with you guys. I don't want anyone thinking less of me."

"Believe me," the assistant grinned, "everyone's been waiting for Zuko to get a new wife. And it should be you. I'm surprised it couldn't happen sooner. I blame arranged marriages." Mai's expression did not change. She simply rolled her eyes and turned to leave.

"You better not be bullshitting me," she threatened as she walked away. "Or I'll make sure you're sorry."

'-'

Kurogane pace back and forth next to the ledge that overlooked the bottom floor. The firebending class currently in session next to her was beginning to dwindle down for the day as more and more were getting ready for the infirmary. It was almost midnight and it was the last class of the day, the advanced class for those who were old enough to have been permanently initiated into the Resistance. She did not want to say anything, not just yet, for she was unsure of which one was Ihsan. She knew it would be an older man, as are all the instructors except for the waterbending teacher, but what normally identifies older people such as grey hair was useless. There were ten people in the class of twenty-five who had grey or silver hair, even though they were no older than twenty. She ran her fingers through her black hair, thankful she did not respond negatively to the chemicals given to each member.

"That is it for today, class!" exclaimed a man from the back of the ring. Kurogane shot her head in the direction of the voice, sure it was Ihsan. "I expect you here tomorrow, and I expect that form to look much crisper!"

"Yes, Sifu Ihsan," the class said in unison. Those remaining all bowed together and exited the ring towards the showers.

"Ihsan!" Kurogane called out from the crowd. She went around the crowd of students leaving the ring and hopped the fence enclosing it.

"I'm sorry, do I know you?" the older man asked, adjusting his glasses.

"I don't think you do," she breathed uneasily. "I'm Marks Kurogane of the Earth Element."

"Oh, you're an assassin?" he asked in almost amazement. "I think I remember you, yes, you killed the Fire Lord as your admittance to the Marks Program, did you not?"

"Yes, that was me," she nodded sheepishly.

"I remember, I was on the board to review you for entry. They gave you a tough one."

"That they did," she said almost sarcastically.

"But I am sure you have done well for yourself, have you not?" he asked her nicely. "I heard you killed the illusive Hiashi, is that correct?"

"Yes, that is true, and that's actually why I am here to see you," she said slowly. "I've been wondering about the timeline and how it works, and I was told you could help me—"

"Nope, sorry, can't help you," he interrupted nicely.

"Wait, excuse me?" Kurogane almost shouted. "Why not?"

"I'm sorry but I can't help," Ihsan said with so much politeness it was terrifying. "That is something you would have to bring up with High Master Keme. I cannot say much."

"But—"

"Good day to you," the man smiled, shoving her out of the ring. "Maybe you can—"

"Marks Kurogane," a voice boomed over the intercom, "please report to the scheduling office. Marks Kurogane, please report to the scheduling office."

"Well, look at that," Ihsan smiled, "maybe High Master Keme would like to speak with you. You can ask him." He finally shoved her out of the firebending ring and before she could stop him he was already walking away.

"Damn it," Kurogane growled.

_I could ask him about the wall, but that means letting him have what he wants…_

_Do I really want to know?_

'-'

I'm not getting any reviews and it kind of makes me sad. I don't know what you people want or if this story is any good. So like, what? I would love some feedback. And also, don't forget about my Deviant Art page. I just added a picture of Ty Lee I drew. Not sure if it's good or not, so go take a look. I'm still looking for watchers if that's possible. And again, I do request for drawings. It gives me something to do. Well, like I said, some feedback would be really nice. So please review! Until next time, Signing Off!


	8. Threatening Eyes

Disclaimer: The following chapter is entirely fictitious. Any similarity to the history of any person living or dead is entirely coincidental and unintentional, except when specifically noted otherwise in the cast and crew credits. All celebrity voices are impersonated and no celebrities have endorsed any aspect of this fic.

Chapter Seven: Threatening Eyes

'-'

Their journey to Engoku could not have been worse. The whole time Zuko had not left his cabin and as far as he knew neither had Mai. Mostly his assistant made many of the decisions for him and kept the ship running, but Zuko did not mind. He was still too occupied with the thought that he was going to Engoku to find out more about Hiashi, and why she would be glad he never found her. He was told that she cared for people and when she cared for them then she would go out of her way to protect them, but he still had problems believing that. Instead, he would try and get that same information from someone who wanted her dead more than anyone.

Assuming he could get what he wanted

"This place smells like shit," Mai mumbled under her breath as the ship docked precariously on one of the many dilapidated port. Indeed the smell was unpleasant and the skies over Engoku still had its unhealthy reddish hue, dirt roads, and adjacent forests. It was still rundown and the pier was still flooded with the raggedly dressed citizens of all kinds of nations. The only difference was, however, there were less people today than there was eight years ago, when the war was still going on. Granted, it was getting close to night so many were retiring, but not at this time, he remembered. There were only the people who were in their shops and sporadic shoppers running around, trying to get home before nightfall. Zuko looked at Mai from the corner of his eyes but said nothing to her. He reminded himself that she had never been here before, so she had every reason to say what she wanted about Engoku.

"Let's just get this over with," Zuko said to her, walking down the ramp onto the shore.

"What are you expecting to find here?" she asked him.

"I'm looking for someone who might have information for me," he answered curtly.

"So then why am I here? Can't you find this person by yourself?"

"No. And even if I could, I need as much back up as I can get."

"So you expect me to throw myself in front of you in case you get attacked?" Mai raised her eyebrow and rolled her eyes with disbelief. "That is the stupidest think I've ever heard."

"It's better than sitting back at home and doing nothing!" he yelled at her.

"Yeah, but at home at least I'm still getting paid to do absolutely nothing." Zuko grunted and left Mai to walk many paces behind him. He knew listening to the witch would come back to fail him. There was not much he could do except find Sureiyaa on the large island. However, despite sounding difficult and time consuming, it seemed it would be much easier than he though. Off in the distance were several people clad in navy blues and silvers, and there in the crowd was one person that stood out in his memory."

"Holy sheeit!" the voice of the familiar androgynous gangster shrieked like a hog monkey. "It's scar face ag'in! I thought ya wuz dead!" It was déjà vu. Like the last time the gangster was surrounded by several others dressed like him and like the same time the gangster asserted himself as if he was invincible. Only this time, Zuko was not by himself.

"Listen here," Zuko snarled at the gangster, abruptly cutting off the laughter that blanketed the group, "I am looking for Sureiyaa. Where is she hiding?"

"Jackass, what makes ya th'o't I know dat? Or dat I'll even tell ya?" the gangster chuckled aggressively. It could have been the end of end of that, but Zuko came prepared with many armed guards, all posed and ready to strike the belligerent person. The gangsters looked around, seeing they were surrounded by an army of armed men.

"Lil' Choujue, just tell 'em," one of the girls with dreadlocks sighed. "You know how 'dem Faiha Nationerza's be with 'dem 'tudes." The hermaphroditic gangster glared at the female counterpart and switched their gaze back at Zuko.

"And what if I don' tell ya?" the gangster snarled, closing the gap between them. "I supposed ya plan on killing me? To hell wiff ya, what makes ya th'o't I'll jive?"

"Youkyou's on the other side," one of the beefier men finally said. "One of them 'tards hangs out on guard. He's bald 'n I think he's a dirt muncher so you can't miss him."

"Nah, I thunk he was a wetback?" one girl with a missing eye frowned.

"Bitch, shut da fuck up, he a dirt muncher!" Lil' Choujue barked. "There, ya got what ya wanted, iz ya happy now salad tosser?"

"Where on the other side?" Zuko asked roughly. The gangster was already infuriated with the others around him who had cooperated with Zuko, but he growled under his breath and finally answered.

"There'suh small shop down da way where dey sell jars. You can see him walking around like he'skeeping an eye out fo' sumfin. He'suh whimp so ya don' gots ta trip about uh fight or anyfin', but I warn ya, dere might be others." He pointed out down the road where the shop would be and added, "They protect Sureiyya well an' keep uh pimp-tight eye on da place, but dat poon-tang shouldn't give ya uh problem. In fact, if ya bully him enough he'll prob'ly show ya where she iz." Zuko jerked his head in the direction the gangster pointed at and led the way down the dirt road. "Don't say I didn't warn ya, though!" the gangster shouted down to them as they got further away. Cuz dat Sureiyaa'suh madness beeotch an' shhe'll shank ya at any chance she gets! Ya' dig?"

"This is going to be the death of me," Zuko muttered under his breath as they headed to the jar shop that was said to be nearby.

"The death of you?" Mai scoffed. "I could be at home right now." Zuko held his tongue and decided to say nothing, allowing the bored Mai to continue to carp about Engoku. After all, there was no worse place in the world. It would have been easier for Zuko to have been carried by the palanquin bearers, however, any sign of expense or prosperity would send up large signals for robbers and gangsters. Instead, a large army of armed guards would suffice. It had only been a quarter of a kilometer but the gangsters were right. Outside a strip mall was a bald man, clad in a washed out frail and thin red vest and just as thin grey shorts, pacing nervously and looking around. The man's head shot up when he heard the crunching sound of gravel and he froze in horror as Zuko and his soldiers drew closer.

"Shit," the man hissed lowly, tripping on both feet and attempting to dash to the door of the shop, but Mai had thought ahead and instead shot several blades into the door of his escape.

"Thank you," Zuko mumbled to her as the man tried to push himself away.

"I didn't do it for you," Mai said blandly, "I'm bored as hell. It just gave me something to do." Zuko glared at her once again, but still said nothing.

"Where is she?" he barked at the man. The man pounded his fist on the door in defeat, releasing a frustrating breath.

"Sureiyaa's been waiting for you," he said in a low voice, "Zuko."

"Then take me to her," he ordered, but the man laughed.

"You really expect me to just take you to her without so much as a fight?"

"You are in no position to fight. I outnumber you."

"She wants you to know she didn't have anything to do with Yanki's death, so you can go ahead and turn around now—" Zuko cut him off with one ball of fire aimed at his head. The man dodged the ball but only to be caught by the throat.

"I don't care!" Zuko snarled. "Take me to Sureiyaa, _now_!"

"I'm telling you, she has nothing you want!" the man spat back viciously.

"I'll be the judge of that!" Zuko rumbled "Now take me to her!"

"If I take you to her, then it will be your life, not mine."

"I'm willing to take my chances." With an outward sweeping arm, the man broke Zuko's grip from his neck and pulled the door to the jar shop open. It was emptied of any light or sound, simply adorned with shelves festooned in jars. He led them to the back of the counter where there was a door to the alley adjacent to them. Thought the door they went and there where no one could see them was a small rundown shack in the small and awkward placing of the alley. In that shack, Zuko assumed, in that tiny, unwelcoming, unassuming, and severely haggard looking shack, was the most feared person in Engoku. Zuko expected better.

"She'll only allow two people in," he said as quietly as he could. "I suggest your best if you wish to survive." He knocked on the door twice and held his fist, waiting for a response.

"You better be knocking because you killed him, Doku," the familiar female voice sounded off from inside.

"He doesn't want to accuse you of anything, Sureiyaa, he just wants to talk," Doku tried to say calmly to her but all that emitted was the shattering sound of porcelain.

"Bring them in, then!" she snarled loudly. Doku flinched but unhinged the lock and pulled it open.

"After you," he ushered sarcastically to Zuko.

"Surround the place just in case," Zuko ordered his men. "Mai, you're coming inside with me."

"Why would I want to do that?" she frowned.

"Because I said so," he said roughly. "You're safer inside than outside."

"I don't need protection. And besides, it's hot out here, and it's probably going to be hotter in there," she grumbled.

"Mai!" he said forcefully. He needed not to say more since she already knew he wanted to order her inside, but he knew he could not order her to do anything she did not want to do. She shoved past him and entered the shack first, Zuko and Doku following, slamming the door behind him.

"Doku, you god damn cunt-eyed bastard, what the hell is your problem?" Sureiyaa snarled once Zuko and Mai had sat down in the trashed chairs in front of her desk. The office was dark and oddly cool, simply lit with an oil lamp on the shelf behind her. On the walls were shelve with many knickknack and paraphernalia, some normal, while others, such as a decayed finger and a shrunken head, disturbing. To the left of her desk were shelves of short sabers, daggers, and other types of swords. Sureiyaa had her scarred feet propped on the rough desk while her goons, the red head and the frail haired girls he had met twice before, were on either side of her, the red head filing her decrepit nails while the silver haired woman leaned on the wall and glared at Zuko suspiciously.

"He just wanted to talk to you," Doku mumbled. "He's not going to do anything, besides, you can outnumber him."

"You're so stupid, you do realize that, yes?" Sureiyaa groaned, rubbing away a headache from her skull.

"I'm sorry, but he just wanted to—"

"Doku, shut the fuck up!" she hollered. Doku hung his head and said nothing. "You know something, when I first rose to power thirteen years ago I appointed you simply because you were sans balls. It was good at first since you never thought beyond your little leechi nut sized brain, but now I'm thinking I have no use for you."

"Sureiyaa, please," he began to stammer, but she would not hear it.

"Damn it!" she yelled, slamming her fist on the desk and fracturing it, forcing everything on it to fall inward. All three, Zuko, Mai, and Doku, were thrown aback in shock at her aggression. "You know what? I'm done! I'm done with your fucking excuses! I'm over it. Shiden over there has more testosterone in her middle finger than you can wish to have! You've been lucky that I kept you on long enough and if I've learned anything from Yanki's failures it's that I can't just trust a beating and others to make sure you learn your lesson."

"Sureiyaa!" was all he could say before a lightning fast grab for her shelf and throw landed a dagger directly into his brain, pinning him to the wall behind him.

"Oh my god!" Mai exclaimed, everyone but Sureiyaa and Shiden staring in horror at the now dead man who was pooling blood on the floor underneath.

"Gingitsune, get that motherfucker out of my office before he starts decomposing." Sureiyaa slumped back in her chair as a belligerent Gingitsune strode slowly to the wall, pulled the knife from the wall and dragged Doku out of the shack by the ankle. "So," she smirked maniacally, she and Shiden unfazed by what she had just done, "you're here to accuse me of killing Yanki, aren't you?"

"Who's Yanki?" Mai asked, apparently stifling her shock of the previous murder.

"Her name was Hiashi, you know that!" Zuko growled.

"Hiashi? _Her_?" Mai continued to ask, but she was again ignored.

"If you're here to ask, I did not kill her," she replied stubbornly. "Are you happy?"

"No, I know who killed her," he answered hastily. "What I want to know is where she's been these past eight years."

"And you expect me to know this why?" she laughed, Shiden laughing along with her.

"Zuko, you fuck-tarded firecracker, why the hell would we know anything about that mongrel Yanki?" Shiden sneered.

"Because he has people to pay to think for him," Sureiyaa chuckled, "why do you think he's got that gwai-lo skank with him?"

"Excuse me?" Mai said defensively.

"Bitch, you wanna try me?" Sureiyaa snarled, and Mai was ready to accept, but Zuko held out his hand to hold her down.

"Don't drag her into it," he said lowly. "You have information for me and I want to know everything you know about her."

"And what if I don't tell you?"

"Then he's going to scar your face, Sureiyaa!" Shiden joked. "So you two look like twins!" Zuko growled, but chose to ignore her comment. Instead, he reached into his cloak and pulled out something that no one had ever seen before.

"You know, while I was banished I travelled to some very intriguing places. Some you will never even have the chance to go, not even if you lived for a millennium. And these people, well, let's just say there are people out there who are much more advanced than us. This I picked up in a small underground city from a friend. He called it a gun."

"And what do you expect to do with this 'gum' of yours?" she smiled wickedly. Her and her crony laughed at him, unaware of what he was aiming at. Mai was lost and kept glancing at him in an attempt to see what he was going to do next. Without so much as a thought Zuko raised his hand with the gun between his fingers and pulled the trigger. The bang scared everyone and suddenly Sureiyaa was clutching her arm. Mai pushed herself away from Zuko while Shiden jumped to her feet, sword drawn and position like a bat

"SON OF A BITCH!" she screamed loudly. She held out her hand to see blood streaming down her arm from a single hole in her bicep. "What the fuck is that!"

"Now," Zuko said calmly, despite the mixture of shock and angered looks from the women, "what do you know about Hiashi?"

'-'

Kurogane took a deep breath as she entered the small stone waiting room. She had been there so many other times before, all for the same reasons, but every time she walked into the office, she could not help but feel chilled. "Hello, Marks Kurogane," the secretary behind the counter smiled. "You can have a seat, I will be with you in a moment." Kurogane nodded and threw herself in the small couch behind her.

_What could be so important that Keme needs me now?_ Kurogane thought to herself. _It's getting late and I'm tired, and I have a long day tomorrow. What did he need to tell me that couldn't wait?_

"Excuse me, miss," a voice snapped her from her own mind, "Can you hand me that scroll?"

"What?" Kurogane gasped before turning to see the man asking for the scroll. "Oh, yeah, here." She picked up the scroll from the table next to her and handed it to the man.

"So what are you here for?" the man asked while unraveling the scroll."

"I have no idea," she admitted. "What about you?"

"I submitted an application for conference room A," he responded. "Just here to get back my confirmation letter."

"Sounds boring," Kurogane yawned. "At least you can get in and out soon enough."

"I doubt it," the man sighed. "I've been here for the past half hour and have yet to get anything."

"Oh, I'm sorry," she apologized for the slow receptionist. "I take it she's still writing it out."

"I doubt that, too," the man scoffed. "Between you and me," he muttered quietly to her, "I think she's been hitting some of the drinks. She's got a cup behind that desk she's been quaffing from since I've been here." Kurogane chuckled which delivered a caustic glare from the woman behind the desk.

"High Master Keme will see you now, Marks," the woman said sharply.

"Marks?" the man frowned. "As in Marks Kurogane?" She sighed as she went to stand up.

"Yes, Marks Kurogane," she groaned.

"You're the one who killed the Fire Lord, right?" he said in amazement. "You're my idol!"

"I'm sure I am," she mumbled, stepping behind the receptionist desk, past the double doors and down the winding stone corridor.

'-'

So sorry to my one reader, Moonlight1405, who has been waiting for a new chapter. Sorry I had to kill of Hiashi, but believe me, by the end of this story you won't be feeling sad that she'd dead. Now as to why I've taken so long to update, well it is a mixture of the facts that I've been lazy and writer's block stricken, but mostly it is because I have been more focused on another piece of fiction I've been working on, something that is not a fanfiction, but based off one, incidentally, this one to be specific! Hopefully I can get it done by sometime next year, but I am looking for readers (for that story). Also, just as a reminder, I have a deviant art page and if you would like to see any OCs mentioned in this fic, or just redrawing of other OCs, please review or PM me. I've recently added a picture of Sureiyaa, Shiden, and Gingitsune, and it was my first time using Photoshop. Frankly, I thought it came out pretty good. And as always, please review. Until next time (and maybe this time it won't be as long) Signing off!


	9. A Hint

Disclaimer: The following chapter is entirely fictitious. Any similarity to the history of any person living or dead is entirely coincidental and unintentional, except when specifically noted otherwise in the cast and crew credits. All celebrity voices are impersonated and no celebrities have endorsed any aspect of this fic.

Chapter Eight: A Hint

'-'

"I have to say, you son of a bitch, your balls finally dropped, didn't they?" Sureiyaa chuckled while Shiden dressed the bullet wound on her bicep. "I never thought I'd complement you, but indeed, bravo."

"You know what I want," Zuko said roughly. "Hiashi's dead and I want to know everything you know about her."

"Like what?" she spat. "She was a bitch and a fucking failure at that."

"You know exactly what I'm talking about! I don't care what you think, I want to know everything you know about her."

"Alright, Zu, but there's very little to say about her and I wouldn't know where to start—"

"Start from the beginning," he interrupted curtly. Sureiyaa rolled her eyes.

"Ionno, was it you who met her first?" Sureiyaa asked Shiden as she continued to wrap the wound.

"Pssh, worst idea ever," Shiden sighed, finishing the bandages off with a final tie.

"Exactly," Sureiyaa smirked wickedly. "She was a tough attitude to crack, but we broke her. She was so adamant that she didn't want to kill anyone, but eventually everyone gets over it. I have to admit, though, she did have some good ideas, but her motherfucking problem was that she was simply lacking common sense, but that's probably because of that mutt blood of hers. She was a real pain in the ass, what with her 'implausible' this and 'can't do' that, some other bullshit nonsense. She always thought there was supposed to be some kind of set boundaries within the gang, but she had to learn that pretty much whatever I said went. Like, we bought this kid, what was her name again?"

"Yousei?" Shiden laughed like they were reminiscing.

"Yeah, that bitch. We bought her in exchange for some drugs we were selling, and Yanki was all surprised that she was eight or something so she made sure she stayed at her side like all the time. It was one of those things that was adorable and ridiculously annoying at the same time. Mostly annoying since I could never get anything done with her. So when we kicked Yanki out I sold her. She was pretty much useless to me after that. Not sure what happened to her, but I really don't care."

"So she protected that girl?" he asked, recalling the ichiko he had met in Eikando.

"She liked to protect a lot of people, including my brother, but she was a fucked up retard anyways, so she was always making things worse." Sureiyaa flexed her hand and tried to move her fingers, but just could not quit accomplish that yet. "And he was a bigger pussy than she was."

"Is that why you killed him?" Zuko said lowly. Mai's eyes bulged at the words he said and turned to look at Sureiyaa for her response, but she simply laughed.

"Are we talking about the same brother?" she chuckled lightly. "I'm the only girl out of five kids. I killed my younger brother, Chin; Kyyoku was my older brother."

"Excuse me, what?" Zuko almost exclaimed. "But I thought you killed him! Hiashi said—"

"Yanki says a lot of thing, and is she ever right? From what I've seen, nope. And she thought she'd teach me a lesson when she found out—"

"WAIT!" Zuko bellowed. "She _knew_? And she was here?"

"First of, she didn't know, fuck-tard, she just found out, like eight years ago—"

"Is that where she's been this whole time?" he asked harshly.

"Motherfucker, let me talk!" Sureiyaa snarled. "Damn, no wonder she fucking left you, you probably wouldn't let her fucking say two motherfucking words before you trampled all over her. Goddamn!" Zuko's face fell even further as Sureiyaa took a breath to calm herself. "Anyways, before I was so goddamn rudely interrupted…

"A few years ago she stopped by, came storming into my office like she was this force to be reckoned with, or some other shit. Of course I was beyond pissed since I thought she was dead, but I learned my lesson, which of course is why Doku's dead. I was just going to kill her right then and there but that fucking firecracker comes in with this bomb and tells me she'll kill me and herself if I didn't listen. I could've taken her on, but I had to admit, she finally grew a pair instead of just cowering and pretending she's all tough. So I decided to listen to her. Of course she tells me off for leaving a burning head on her doorstep that looked like his, but she was getting all pissy with me about how she'd finally had enough of my shit and how she was tired of living in fear of everyone, so she figured she'd start out with the least amount of her worry, me.

"She was saying how it wasn't her fault that she was a mudblooded race-traitor bitch and that it wasn't fair that I would judge her for something she couldn't help. I was like what the fuck about it because to be honest, I didn't give no two fucking shits about what she had to say, but then she starts saying some shit about how she was going to protect her family from people like me. Then she started with this maudlin crap about how she wanted the rift between me and Kyyoku to be fixed, but that was the line."

"Family?" he said roughly. "What is this family I keep hearing about?"

"Really, you expected her to just do nothing for almost ten year? She fucked my brother and popped out devil children. It's as simple as that. After that whole meeting thing she wanted to be family or something so that way her family wasn't as fucked up as hers or mine. I was gonna say fuck no, but then I thought about it and decided why the hell not."

"But why?" Shiden interrupted. "I thought you hated her and Kyyoku even more? Why would you want to be family with them?"

"Eh, things were getting stale around here," she shrugged. "And frankly I wanted something that wasn't completely disappointing. Everyone kept fucking up and I wanted some kind of good news to keep myself from fucking blowing everyone up who pissed me off. So I let her send me letters once in a while of her fucking half-breed kids and what they've done, learned to walk, talking, some other BS, along with these weird pictures of them I've never seen before that her sister would give to her. But the letters from her stopped about four months ago. Never heard back except a letter my brother sent telling me she died."

"And you didn't think anything was wrong when she stopped sending you letters?" Zuko barked.

"Fuck no," she barked back. "Besides, I didn't care if she was dead, and I still don't. She was nothing but a piece of shit mongrel then and she's nothing but a piece of shit mongrel now. And besides, as far as I'm concerned those kids are better off without her. She wasn't exactly a prize pigster herself."

"How dare you say that!" he snarled.

"Shut the fuck up, you scarred face bastard, you don't know what you're talking about!"

"I think we're done here," he growled, shoving himself up from the chair. "Let's go."

"Fine, go ahead and leave," she said. "You think you're being all defensive of her, but there's a reason why I have that bitch, and it's not just because she's a mutt."

"Mai, let's go," he said harshly. He grabbed her by the wrist and pulled her through the door and back into the muggy air of the outside.

"Don't say I didn't warn you," she shouted to him before they left. "You may have liked her, but she was a bitch!"

"What was that all about?" Mai finally asked once the door was closed. "Who is this Hiashi and why are we looking for her? What is this all about? Her waiting for—what is going on?"

"I'll explain later," he said harshly. He once again had hit a dead end and had no way of finding out why she had left. All he had going for him was that she did go out of her way to protect those she cared about. But his question was not answered. She was glad he had never found her, but why? Was it because she was worried he would get hurt? Perhaps she knew she would die eventually, but then again she started a family with her old boyfriend, one who she was torn up about when she thought he was dead. Maybe it was something he would not like to know. He turned back to the jar shop and was ready to instruct the men surrounding the shack to follow when a piece of paper addressed to him caught his eye on the wall.

"What is that for?" Mai question as Zuko pulled the note from the wall.

"I don't know," he mumbled, unfolding the piece of parchment to read what it said. In sloppy and choppy handwriting, the paper read:

_Zuko,_

_What you need to know is not here. You'll find out very little about the death of Hiashi by asking around. Why she left you is not important, rather, you need to concern yourself as to why she died and who killed her. You know who killed her, no doubt, and your knowledge of those who did it is amateur at best. You need to know more about them, but I must warn you, any more knowledge of them is dangerous, so you need to know these risks. I can tell you everything you need to know about them, but I also need to tell you that not only was Hiashi in danger, but so are several others, and with your knowledge, more lives can be saved, including her family, who is also in danger. _

_Stop focusing on why she left for now and begin focusing on why she died. I will tell you everything you need to know. If you accept this request, then be at the ocean side cliff at midnight. Bring no one. The more who know, the more who are endangered._

There was nothing more on the note. If what was being said was true he needed to go. But he was suspicious. Who knew he was here looking for information on Hiashi?

"So what are you going to do about it?" Mai asked. Zuko snapped out of his trance and truly thought about what he was going to do.

"I think," he finally answered, "I think I need to find out what is going on."

'-'

This was indeed a short chapter, but I didn't want to taint it with anything else. Plus I updated another chapter, and both chapters are really short, so I figure that might balance them out. And as to why I didn't put them up in the same chapter, well I though they stood better alone as opposed to together, simply because it adds more drama that way. I mean, I probably could have added more, but by simply splitting them into two chapters instead of one, well, I think I already said it, it adds more drama. Plus the excitement kind of dwindles down when you know two things are going on at the same time, so you can go ahead and be all psyched because you won't know what's going on until chapter ten, but by chapter ten you'll come out of this knowing more about the Resistance, since we already knew that was coming. Once again I have a deviant art page, and if anyone would like to suggest an OC drawing or perhaps you just want to see a redrawing of another character please feel free to help me and as always please leave a review. As to Moonlight1405, I'm glad I could make you laugh ^ - ^. I try : ) . And as to bubblylady, hello and thank you for reading my story : D . Hopefully you don't regret reading it and end up killing brain cells in the process. Until next time, Signing Off!


	10. Behind Secretive Walls

Disclaimer: The following chapter is entirely fictitious. Any similarity to the history of any person living or dead is entirely coincidental and unintentional, except when specifically noted otherwise in the cast and crew credits. All celebrity voices are impersonated and no celebrities have endorsed any aspect of this fic.

Chapter Nine: Behind Secretive Walls

'-'

"Oh, Miss Kurogane, it is so nice of you to stop by," Keme said nicely from behind his chair.

"It was no problem, High Master Keme," Kurogane replied lowly.

"I apologize for this meeting being so late, but I heard you were in the vicinity so I decided to take advantage of you being here."

"It is not a problem," she forced herself to repeat.

"I actually have two propositions for you," he sighed, pushing himself to a standing position and stalking his way around his desk to his bookshelf. "My first one, Fire Lord Zuko is learning too much about us much too fast and he needs to be taken care of. I know you have done it once before, so I was going to ask you again."

"Yes, sir," she responded habitually.

"But the only problem is that he already knows too much about us. I wonder if our techniques will work on him, so I need you and several others to ambush him when he is alone."

"Yes, sir," she responded again.

"And I have one more request for you." He took a long pause before he asked his question to position himself behind her. "There is another half breed child, a mudblood to be specific, down south. Her name is Awinita and she was recently born to a couple so she is only a few months old."

"Sir, a child?" she asked with worry. The man's brows furrowed.

"Yes, a child," he said roughly. "She is well protected, so she must be taken care of before she gets old enough to defend herself."

"But—"

"I only say she needs to be killed, because as well as her parents, that whole family is nothing but trouble, including the aunt of this child, who may fall into the same path as her brother. Do you think you can do that for me?"

"Yes, sir," she answered yet again.

"Oh, and there is one more thing. The sister of Hiashi, Tsuchi, will be coming to our planet from Earth in a few days, she needs to be killed as well."

"If you do not mind me asking you, sir, but why? She no longer lives on our planet so should we really be concerned about her?"

"Yes, we must," he said harshly. "She must be made an example of. Just because she left our world does not mean that she can get away with her life."

"Yes, sir," she said quickly to stifle the fire that was brewing.

"So here are the files on your next targets," he smiled, handing her a small bag filled with scrolls. "You can read up on them and decided a course of action. If you need anything else—"

"Yes, sir, I actually had a question about something and I was wondering if maybe you knew the answer."

"Oh course, Miss Kurogane," he smirked suspiciously. "What is it that you need?"

She took a deep breath, unsure if she should answer, but going against her gut, she finally asked, "I was wondering about the timeline. I wanted to know more about the wall and how it worked… mostly out of curiosity, with all due respect." Keme smirked wickedly and gently brushed his hand on her bare shoulder, sending chills throughout her.

"Of course you would want to know," he said lowly in her ear. "But I am wondering why. It is not simply curiosity that would draw anyone to the wall. Why should I tell you the secrets behind the wall?"

"It is simply curiosity," she forced herself to say without trembling. "And I would really like to know." Keme chuckled lightly.

"You just want to know? Of course I can tell you." He let his hands drag across her back as he walked away, causing Kurogane's throat to swell up. "A hundred or so years ago, our founding fathers formed The Universal Resistance in order to keep a strict boundary between all four nations, since they could not simply live with each other in peace if they were intermixed.

"It was a fantastic plan to start with, and they garnered support from the greatest minds in the world, but they wanted to continue to be the greatest minds. History books were written by people, but only the winners, as you know. No one who would buy a book from the Fire Nation would want to hear about the ruthless genocide of the Air Nomads. They want to hear about how the Fire Nation defeated the Air Nomad's formal army in a fair battle of good versus evil, the evil, of course being my own people, the Air Nomads."

"Of course," she nodded in acknowledgment.

"History writers are the cruelest things to happen to literature. They have no shame about telling and spreading their putrid lies to everyone. That was something the founders of the Resistance wanted to avoid. They wanted unadulterated history, so that way the people of the Resistance knew why they were fighting. So they decided to create _Le Mur de Toute la Connaissance_. But in doing so, they decided why stop at simple world problems? Are not the issues of daily people just as important? Of course they are. That is how we find our half blooded fiends that are not a part of the Resistance. So the founders decided to include all those who live on this planet, from the newest born child to the oldest man in the farthest away place."

"That is interesting, High Master Keme," she responded quickly. "But how does the wall work?"

"Oh, that is easier to think than to explain," he creepily smirked. "You see, it is not very easy to create a timeline of a billion or so people at a time. As you may already know, names have a tendency to repeat. People change their names, people move around, nothing is consistent. So in an act of nothing but pure genius, the founding fathers managed to make their way into the spirit world.

"You see, each person is given a soul, as you already know. But what people don't know is that those souls are what keeps them attached to the spirit world. Once a person dies, their soul returns to the spirit world and they no longer have jurisdiction over their lives. But in order to guarantee their spot in the ultimate paradise, they must follow a certain goal of conduct. If the good outweighs the bad then of course they are allowed in. And of course if it doesn't then they perish for the rest of their eternal life. Now in order to determine if their souls can truly be accepted into the afterlife then they need to keep track, yes?"

"Of course," she responded quickly.

"So in order to keep track of everyone, their souls keep a note of every time they do something, whether they move, if they help someone take their groceries home, or even if they kill someone unjustly. Our founders discovered this about human souls and utilized it to their advantage. You see, each human soul is collected to the wall, marking down events of people and what decisions they make every day. And if a large event were to occur that affects many people, the wall registers this and files all victims or those affected under one placement. And if a person were to die, the wall registers this as a soul who will no longer make decision, so the name disappears forever, no longer making any notes of them and the things they may do."

"So," Kurogane frowned, "no one can change it? Like, what if the wall is wrong about something? Could someone go up to it and change it manually?"

"For someone who is clever, you certainly have stupid thoughts," Keme laughed rudely. "Were you not listening to what I said? The wall was designed so that no human interaction could affect it. If one were to manually change it then the wall would say so. There is no way around it! The wall is connected to the souls of every person. In fact, the only plausible way around the wall is if someone somehow managed to detach themselves from their souls, then only then can they probably sleuth around our world undetected, or if somehow you switched souls with someone, both of which are highly irrational, not to mention impossible. Even so, the wall would know and would tell us, so we would know what to look for." Kurogane hung her head to allow her face to fall without being seen. The wall was unstoppable. Defeat was impossible.

"Thank you sir," she said quietly. "That was very enlightening and I appreciate your time. I will take my files and study them first thing in the morning—"

"Well where do you think you are going?" he asked darkly, grabbing her roughly by the wrist.

"I was about to leave," she forced herself to say. "It is getting late and—"

"Oh no, you can't leave," he said much too close to her face.

"Sir, please—" she began, but suddenly she stopped, finding it impossible to breath.

"Now Miss Kurogane," he said with a weird calm as he was slowly suffocating her, "you asked me a question, a question that I have to say is very suspicious. Now you claim it is out of curiosity and I believe you but you can't simply expect me to just answer your question without so much as a consolation to my suspicions. If you were planning on doing something to our wall I would be _so_ devastated if I found out you were without so much as threatening you if you did. Now a simple threat will not suffice for me since you can go through with it anyways if you so wish to chose. But if I were to punish you now for asking questions you should not be asking, then the lingering threat of a fate worse than death should keep you in check." Kurogane's face began to turn red as she struggled to breath. She tried to remain calm, as her training had always taught her, but a twinge of panic began to erupt in her lungs as her head suddenly began to get heavier.

"Sir," she attempted to mouth, and with her free hand, she tried to push him away, but he grabbed it quickly.

"Don't try and speak," he snarled, pulling her much too close to himself. "You'll need as much air as you can get."

'-'

Oh snap, he a jerk. NEHO, not much to say here, just go ahead and wait for another update. Don't know when that will be, probably sometime next week. I've actually sort of neglected my other writing, which is bad because I need to get a really big head start of it if I plan on finishing it by next year T-T. I also have my final on Monday, and then it's vacation time for me, assuming I can't get any classes for summer school. Darn you budget cuts. So you just hang tight for an update if you're looking forward to one. Oh, and I'm planning on getting another rat. For those who do not know (you probably don't) I use to have a rat. She was wonderful. Her name was Monkey Mouse (my dad's idea. I wanted to name her Hyroki, after the fat rat in my fanfiction, but she heard Monkey Mouse one too many times, so that was what she responded to.) She was a hairless rat, too, and she was really smart and nice, but she was a victim of inbreeding and passed away three months ago due to a tumor which caused her to become malnourished. It took me a while to get over it, but now I'm planning on getting a new rat! Hopefully one that won't die due to cancer, but we'll see what happens. If I do end up getting them, then I'll post pictures of them on my deviant art page. And as always, please review. Until next time, Signing Off!


	11. Actions Against My Best Interests

Disclaimer: The following chapter is entirely fictitious. Any similarity to the history of any person living or dead is entirely coincidental and unintentional, except when specifically noted otherwise in the cast and crew credits. All celebrity voices are impersonated and no celebrities have endorsed any aspect of this fic.

Chapter Ten: Actions Against My Best Interests

'-'

"Are you really going to go over there without anyone with you?" Mai asked as Zuko sheathed himself with a dark red cloak. "I've never been here before, but all the things I've heard about Engoku are bad."

"I need to know what's going on," Zuko answered calmly. "Whoever sent that note has information for me and I can't just ignore it."

"But you don't know who sent it," she frowned. "For all you know this could be some kind of trap. They could be trying to get you alone so they can kill you."

"And who would want to kill me?" Zuko nearly shouted.

"The people who wrote that letter!" Mai answered. "Maybe they're the ones who want to kill you. They might just be luring you into a false sense of security for all you know."

"I'll be fine," Zuko reassured her, but mostly he was trying to reassuring himself. "I can watch over myself."

"Fine, but I'm going with you," she replied. Zuko shot his head up and turned to look at her sharply.

"No, you're not," he exclaimed. "You read what the note said, the more people who know… you're going to get killed. I can't have that happened."

"Zuko, I'm bored as hell here!" Mai yelled at him. "And besides, I don't need you protecting me; I can take care of myself. Also, I'm bored."

"You just said that," Zuko glowered.

"I know that," she snapped back caustically. "But I have a feeling you seriously underestimate how bored I really am."

"It's night time, why don't you go to sleep?"

"Have you slept in this ship? It's like I'm being baked alive in my room. At least out here I can breathe."

"Even if I did let you go, you'd have to be standing away so you won't be seen, which means you could get attacked—"

"Who said I was going to be hiding in the dark? You dragged me on this trip. I think I deserve to know what's going on."

"You wouldn't understand. You don't know about the Resistance."

"Resistance?" she said, taken aback. "What are you talking about? Those people who stand outside the palace waving around the old Fire Nation flag?"

"No," he answered. "This is something no one could have imagined."

"Like what?"

"If you're going with me, then you'll know." Zuko threw the hood of his cloak over his head and stalked his way over to the stairs. "Grab something dark. You don't want to be seen."

'-'

It was still muggy outside but a breeze from the ocean crept up from the waters and hit them just gently enough. The two sat in silence while they waited for the mystery person to tell them what they needed, but whoever it was, they were taking their sweet time. Surely it was getting past midnight and the both of them were beginning to feel the fatigue of the sticky weather from earlier. Zuko turned to look at Mai, who returned a look of annoyance, implying she was as ready as him to simply return to the ship and call it a night. He was ready to nod in agreement, as he, too, was tired, but a sudden rustling from the bush told him otherwise.

"I told you to come alone, Zuko," a familiar voice said from the dark. "I wouldn't call it safe for two Fire Nationals to be wandering around by themselves at night." From the darkness came a familiar silver haired woman with piercing amethyst eyes.

"You!" Zuko gasped once he had registered where he had seen her from.

She used her trademark lead pipe to hoist herself up to their level and looked towards Mai. "Why is she here?"

"She's with me," Zuko replied. "She deserves to know as much as I do."

"Aren't you the girl from earlier?" Mai asked, recognizing her as the one who dragged Doku's lifeless carcass from Sureiyaa's office.

"Gingitsune," Zuko answered her. "She's with their gang, but you're with the Resistance too?"

"For someone so educated, you are certainly dull at times," she said quietly in disgrace. "It's not hard to spot us. We all have the same eyes, whether it be Fire Nation, Earth Kingdom, Water Tribe, or Air Nomad—"

"But the Air Nomad are dead," Mai interrupted. Gingitsune rolled her eyes.

"She obviously knows nothing of the Resistance," she said with the same amount of shame as she did to Zuko. "You both realize that what I'm going to tell you could cost you your lives? If I tell you this then you will be followed and you will be killed."

"Then why are you telling me this?" Zuko asked her. "What about you? Won't they kill you?"

"Yes," she answered bluntly. "But I'm tired of staying in the dark. I have a High Master I need to please and Sureiyaa who treats me like shit, it's too much for me. I'm tired of getting pushed around by everyone, so you know what? I'm done with it. And I know you're looking for information. And you'll need it."

"Start from the beginning, then," Zuko instructed. "Fill Mai in on what she doesn't know." Gingitsune turned to look out at the moon which lingered gently over the black waters. She was seemingly not cold despite the lack of clothing she wore. Maybe she was, but she seemed as if she stopped caring about everything.

"About a hundred years ago the Resistance branched off another secret society called the Order of the White Lotus, a group based of philosophy and knowledge. Ask your uncle, Zuko, he'll know. Once the war was imminent, several people from the White Lotus began saying how they should stop the Fire Nation from conquering the others. They were, after all, the most knowledgeable people in the whole world and they had not only the numbers, but the strength to do so. But the other members said no. Violence could not be solved with more violence. So those renegade members left the White Lotus and started the Universal Resistance. Each member of Resistance agrees that no one nation is superior than the other and that each nation should remain separate. The one thing they do agree on is that they all need to work together in order to remain separate. Sort of an ironic paradox.

"Anyways, whenever people hear 'resistance' they automatically think of a small ragtag team or rebels trying to take down smaller fleets, but that's far from the truth. No, the Resistance is much more complex than everyone thinks it is. From birth, each pureblooded baby is ripped away from its parents and raised as one group within their own kind. Once those who are able to bend are established from the group they are sent to training. Each child goes through three levels of training: elemental, which focuses on the main art or bending; analogous, which focuses on spreading out of the standard elements and branching to those with similar properties, like a firebender would learn how to manipulate heat and light, or a waterbender would learn how to work with plants, or an earthbender would work with metal and stuff, airbenders with noise, et cetera; and body, which pulls more into studying the human body and how each element can be used against it. You know, earthbenders with bones and minerals in the body such as iron, waterbenders with blood, plus the body's about sixty percent water, firebenders with temperature control, and airbenders controlling all forms of air in the body, especially oxygen. Each training process lasts about five years of pure commitment to the art, total of fifteen years. Those element benders who get through the training can get vocation in an array of things to assist the Resistance. You can become a physician, a foot soldier, an assassin, or a scope, like me. I keep an eye on the events and people stationed on Engoku and I help out anyone in the Resistance that needs it."

"So what happens with the kids who aren't benders?" Zuko asked.

"Well those kids are really generally raised. Sometimes they're raised and they're trained in some other form of martial arts, but about half of them are used as test dummies. See, as the element benders get older and start learning how to manipulate the human body they need to practice on someone. So if we can't afford to practice on each other or we don't have any prisoners to use we end up using them. Actually, about eight years ago when the war ended everyone on Engoku celebrated the victory in the name of the Earth Kingdom, or whatever nation won. Because most of the people here are asshole refugees, mostly everyone went on a killing spree and began to kill a lot of the Fire Nation locals. Deciding to use that to their advantage the Resistance kidnapped a lot of people from the Fire Nation and pretty much used them for practice. There's still quite a number of Fire Nationals living here, most of them neo-Anarchists who are rioting for the war again. So they're usually either killed or kidnapped by us."

"And what is this I heard about counterfeit Avatar?" Zuko asked again.

"Counterfeit Avatars?" Mai frowned.

"Oh, those," Gingitsune sighed. "Well, despite their hatred for half bloods, they have attempted to create their own through this process called in vitro fertilization. Basically they get both the sperm and the egg from two opposite elements, preferably two benders since they have a higher chance of producing a bender, and placed inside a representative who will give birth to it. Then two pairs of half bloods will go through the same thing and then hopefully produce a child who is capable of bending all elements. But only the poly benders are kept. Since they're such an abomination, anything short of what they want is killed once they can figure out what kind of benders they are."

"Wait," Zuko intervened, "if mixed blooded people are such abominations, why make them?"

"Because despite the fact that they're inferior genetic scum they serve their purpose as our ultimate weapon. People think that because the Avatar is so powerful they would automatically win a battle against any group of people. But what is one Avatar compared to seven? The only difference between them is that the actual Avatar is connected to the Spirit World, but that's about it. And in actuality, our counterfeit Avatars are mostly hydrogen benders, so they don't really control all the elements, just those that contain hydrogen, which severely limits them. People think it's easy to make a hybrid that can bend two elements, but they don't realize what goes into it.

"Bending goes hand in hand with genetics. Bending is a recessive trait generally and so two benders have a better chance of producing a bending child. However, everyone thinks that because these genetics are based on science then that means we can completely ignore the spiritual aspects of the art. But that's not the case. You see, naturally each element has its opposite. Earth and air are opposites as well as fire and water are opposite. Even the Avatar has a problem with his opposing element, you can't deny that. At first the Resistance figured they could pair up any two nations together to produce a hybrid but as it turns out several things can happen: the babies end up as a stillbirth, they die young, they are really sick, they are _never_ benders, and, or they end up being deathly ill if they end up as a bender. Steambloods and dustbloods can't happen in nature, only magbloods, mudbloods, mistbloods, mugbloods, so that whole nonsense of even producing a crossbreed of a Fire Nation and a Water Tribe child would be out of the question, or even an Earth Kingdom and Air Nomad child."

"You keep mentioning Air Nomads," Mai intervened. "But they're all dead."

"No, they are not," Gingitsune breathed. "They are a rare breed, yes, only about two hundred of us exist—"

"You're an airbender?" Zuko quickly disrupted. Gingitsune nodded slowly.

"Our leader's an airbender as well," she added slowly. "You wouldn't think it simply because our people were raised on the idea of treating everything on this planet with respect, but with every people there are always those who fall. Like me. I'm not talking about my heritage, though. There are some of the people in the Resistance who start having doubts about why we are really doing what we're doing, but they are always killed. They are always found out because of our Wall of All Knowledge. Each person on this planet's soul is attached to it so it knows everything in the world. So if anyone were to even decide to turn renegade then it would know. And then those in charge of keeping an eye on the wall would report it to the higher ups and then those people are turned in. I haven't been turned in yet since I decided today to drop my loyalty."

"I don't believe it," Mai said suddenly.

"I don't think you understand then how horrible the Resistance is—"

"No," Mai cut her off, "I don't believe you're an airbender. I don't believe airbenders still exist. That's just a lie. A lot of what you're saying just sounds made up."

"You want me to prove it to you?" she growled. "What would you like me to show you? How about some airbending?" She swung her hand over her head and suddenly the minute breeze grew into a monsoon sized gale. "Or," she added once the wind had died down, "I can either increase the atmospheric pressure," closing in her hands as suddenly Zuko and Mai's heads began to feel heavy, "or I can decrease it," and suddenly their heavy heads began to feel light. "Or," she added, and suddenly the two of them could not breathe, "I can take air away from you altogether." Mai drew up her wrist to her throat in an attempt to remove the invisible hand but the two reacted at the same time to try and force her to let them go, but their attempts were to no avail. "Silly children," she laughed, dropping her hands and allowing them to breathe. "You can't bend fire in a vacuum and those blades can only go so far."

"Fine," Mai coughed, rubbing her windpipe. "But I doubt that was necessary." Mai seemed okay and if she was not, then she was masking it well, but Zuko could not help but feel disturbed. He had never felt so nervous before. She was attacking him from the inside without even touching him.

"What about mindbending?" Zuko asked, trying to ignore his discomforting fear.

"You mean mind manipulation? That's another thing our Resistance Youth are trained in. Starting at age ten, the children basically take classes in the human mind and how it works. Mindbending isn't anything massive, but all it does is use subliminal messages, cold readings, and the art of suggestion to basically convince anyone to do almost anything. We're good enough that we can leave a bag with a thousand gold pieces in it on the streets of Engoku for a week without anyone taking it."

"And what's the point of learning how to do that?" Mai questioned.

"We get people to do what we want," she answered simply. "Other times we do it because we don't want people getting too curious. Let's say someone begins asking too many questions, I could simply subliminally suggest they stop asking, or even make them forget what they were talking about altogether. No tricks, just mental suggestions."

"That sounds a little ridiculous."

"You know," Gingitsune said suddenly, "do you know much about toothaches? It's very interesting, what happens is that the whole area of the nerve," she described, bringing her fist to her jaw and shaking it violently, "right here at the base of the jaw, right here," she pointed out to Mai and Zuko, repeating her action on either side of their jaw, "would go bad, right in there. You must've had a really bad toothache, the first sort of tingling feeling, I mean, what's it like, Mai? How would you describe toothache pain?"

"Constant pain, I guess," she answered slowly, her hand moving up to where Gingitsune had touched her. As if from nowhere, Zuko's mouth began to prickle with a sensation he had never felt before. He, too, reached up for his jaw where Gingitsune had pointed out. The sensation began to increase exponentially, so slightly at first but suddenly morphing into a pain equivalent to a cramping muscle, only it was in his mouth, much more sharp, and no way to relieve it.

"You can feel it, can't you?" Gingitsune asked the two of them. Zuko clenched his jaw and nodded. "You're genuinely feeling that now?"

"Yes," Mai replied sharply.

"So do you think this is the kind of pain that can't spread?" she asked, brushing her hands on the opposite side where she had not touched and suddenly the two felt the pain not only in one spot, but their entire jaw had suddenly been engulfed by the sharpening pain. "Then it gets worse," she added as the pain increased, "and worse," as the pain became unbearable, "and then, suddenly…

"It stops," she said calmly, clapping her hands loudly together. As if she had blown out a candle, the pain was suddenly gone from their mouths. "Now stop questioning me. What I am telling you is absolutely true. None of this can be made up! What, did you really think violet eye occur naturally in nature? Or how about grey hair at the age of ten? I doubt that's natural!"

"What did they do to you?" Zuko asked quietly.

"You think our war was bloody," Gingitsune laughed almost insanely. "You've never been there before, Zuko, but Hiashi has. There was a planet, called Earth, they were in the same position as we were eight years ago. While our war lasted for a hundred years, theirs lasted for a measly six. Don't ask me how time works with these things, I honestly don't know, but about twenty years ago several Fire Nation soldiers tried to infiltrate our headquarters. Of course they all died, but they had disguised themselves as members of the Resistance. We couldn't have that happen again, but it was so easy for people to come in disguise we would never be able to tell each other apart. So several of our members went out of our world to search for a way we could solve this little problem. One of our members, on Earth, managed to stumble across something so grizzly it made our war look like a party game. This country by the name of 'Germany' started a war for world conquest, just like the Fire Nation had, and had begun sending all those who they considered inferior into these camps—"

"Prison camps?" Mai asked.

"You only wish they were prison camps. No, these were death camps, specifically designed to kill masses of people as quickly as possible. They would import people into these camps and by the hundreds, groups of men, women, and even children were either gassed to death or simply cremated alive. Yes, it is a fact," she added to their look of horror, "but in their cases I think a quick thirty minute death would have been a much better fate compared to those deemed worthy of survival. Those who weren't automatically killed were literally worked to death. Little food was given to these workers on top of twelve hour work day, ghastly living conditions, and on top of it all, human experiment. You see, one of our members managed to come across a camp where a doctor by the name of Joseph Mengele was running experiments on humans for a gamut of things. He was an awful man and why we as a Resistance decided to do nothing about it will forever claw at me, but one of his experiments was attempting to alter eye color by injecting different chemicals into the eye. All his experiments failed and ended up leaving most of his victims dead, but the man who saw this decided to work from where Mengele had left off. About ten years later the chemical had been perfected and each member of the Resistance was injected with the serum. It turns your eyes purple and technically it's supposed to turn your hair black, but with some of us the proteins in the serum damage hair proteins, turning our hair this sickly grey color. I don't know if you'd believe me if I told you I use to have brown hair and grey eyes, but that doesn't matter now. I've run my course here."

"But—"

"I tried to help Hiashi, I did, Zuko. I told her about the Resistance. I didn't go into any detail about it, simply that there was an organization of rebels where she would really be protected, but she refused. I didn't know what else to do so I let her go. I was supposed to help someone else kill her, but I couldn't do it. I got in a lot of trouble for foiling her assassination, but they deemed my involvement as an accident since I was supposed to be undercover anyways and to protest with Sureiyaa about selling her information to Admiral Zhao, well that would blow my cover. But she survived and I knew she would since those two were firebenders. It wasn't a great fate, but she managed to live almost another ten years. You already know the Resistance killed her, but I have to tell you this too, they are after her family now. Her children, her husband, I know you don't like them, but they're next. And there is someone else in danger, but you'll need their help most of all. You know exactly who I'm talking about. You'll have to head over there next."

"So you're not going to help?" Mai asked her.

"I already said my course has run," she answered quietly, walking slowly to the ledge of the cliff they were on. "I can't help you anymore than I've helped you now."

"Gingitsune," Zuko said sharply as he jumped to his feet, "what are you doing?"

"You best be vigilant, Fire Lord Zuko," she simply said, turning to face him. "They are after you, too."

"Gingitsune!" Zuko barked but he was suddenly overcome with the same feeling as earlier of being unable to breathe, only it was much more severe.

"Don't try and fix what's not broken," she said to him. "But I implore you to remember this: You cannot fight fire with fire. You must… fight fire… with water…" She let go of his throat and without hesitation, she let herself fall backwards, into the jagged knives and sharp blackness of the rocks and ocean below, leaving only her lead pipe behind.

'-'

This was mostly an insightful chapter so you can get a better idea of the Resistance and what goes on, but I do understand it got a little dark towards the end, but I have to say I like darkness, it makes it easier to sleep. Actually I had an epic dream the other night that gave me the best idea for my story! Not this story, the other one I've been talking about (no one knows what I'm talking about…). Although I'd have to see if it would even work out. NEHO, Moonlight1405, I have no idea who you thought it was, but seeing as how I am _very_ bad at suspense, I would have to guess you thought it was Gingitsune? I have no idea… As always, please review and I also have a deviant art page. Haven't added anything in a while, except to my scrapbook, but that's about it. And like I say, if you have a request for an OC, a redrawing of an OC, or simply have a drawing request feel free to tell me. Until next time, Signing Off.

ALSO! Remember the following terms: steambloods, dustbloods, magbloods, mudbloods, mistbloods, and mugbloods? These are all references to a different pair of nationalities. Try and guess which is which! (Like Fire Nation/ Water Tribe, Earth Kingdom/ Air Nomad, Fire Nation/ Earth Kingdom, Earth Kingdom/Water Tribe, etc.) Just for fun, see if you can guess them!


	12. In the Darkness of the Night

Disclaimer: The following chapter is entirely fictitious. Any similarity to the history of any person living or dead is entirely coincidental and unintentional, except when specifically noted otherwise in the cast and crew credits. All celebrity voices are impersonated and no celebrities have endorsed any aspect of this fic.

Chapter Eleven: In the Darkness of the Night

'-'

It was cold out, once again. They were away from the stuffiness of the dreaded island. It had only been a day since they had left and Gingitsune's final words were still ringing in his head.

"_You cannot fight fire with fire. You must… fight fire… with water…"_

Whatever she meant by it, Zuko did not know. He felt bad enough that she had killed herself in order to spare a fate worse than death at the hands of the Resistance, but what did that mean for him? His father was killed simply because he was Fire Lord, but he, well, he knew about the Resistance. He now knew everything about them, and along with being the Fire Lord who had once sheltered a hybrid, he was no doubt considered a triple threat now. But it was not enough for his life to be in danger, but now her whole family was in trouble. He was supposed to go protect them, but that was not where he was heading first. He did not need to go home just yet since she told him where he needed to go, but it did not stop him from feeling nervous because if what she said was true, then the Resistance could have easily changed their plans to avoid him.

"You still up, too?" Mai's voice echoed from behind him. He turned his head to watch her walk over barefooted with her robe draped over her. Watching her walk to him while he was leaning over the ship's rail gave him the chills, remembering the countless times that Hiashi had done the same. He shook his head in an attempt to ignore his eye tricks and stared back into the empty waters as Mai took the spot next to him.

"Why are you awake?" he asked her as she mimicked his stance.

"I don't know about you, but I keep dreaming of that girl letting herself fall off the cliff. I can't sleep."

"I know exactly what you mean," he said quietly, not removing his eyes from the water. "I wished there was something I could have done but there isn't. She was right: we're in danger. I don't know why I let you come."

"I'm not a child, Zuko," Mai said defensively. "I can take care of myself. And frankly I think I deserve to know what's going on. You sent that pathetic assistant of your to come get me because you were so desperate for me to come with you and you expect me to simply sit here in the dark without even questioning why I'm following you though Engoku to look for gangbangers?" Zuko did not reply, in fact, he did not move a muscle. Mai glowered at him but decided not to say anything. The two stood in silence once again like they had done again after again. He did not want to say anything to her, not just yet. He was partially hoping that she would just leave so he would not have to talk, but he forced himself not to think it. She had a point, that she gave up all she had to do back home so that she could be here, so why would he expect her to simply take a seat in the back and remain passive? "Who's Hiashi?" she asked suddenly.

"Excuse me?"

"We've been searching this whole time for this girl named Hiashi and everyone seems to know who she is but me. What was her deal?"

"She was an old friend," he answered only partially. "She had a complicated past, and she died by the hands of the Resistance."

"And this was because she was a mudblood?"

"She wasn't a mudblood," Zuko said roughly. "Well, she was, but not a mudblood. Gingitsune called it a magblood, point is, her parents came from two different nations and mudblood's a horrible thing to say."

"I just said—oh, never mind. You're more emotional than a girl sometimes."

"I am not a girl!" he said defensively. Mai smirked slightly and laughed.

"Calm down, I was just joking." There was silence once again, but she obviously had too many question. "Zuko, do you mind me asking you something?"

"No," he replied curtly.

"Why am I here? You obviously don't need me so—"

"I'm not going to answer that," he said sharply.

"Hey, I didn't have to come!" she snapped back. "Your little lackey came over and practically begged me to come. I swear, he looked as if I told him no then he would explode."

"I don't think I feel comfortable telling you—"

"_You_ feel uncomfortable? I'm risking my own image! If people find out that I'm here with you while you're married it's going to ruin my reputation!"

"Well, maybe I didn't plan on staying married, okay?" he yelled at her.

"What are you talking about?"

"I don't know if you know this but the only reason I got married is because everyone kept pressuring me to do so. I kept getting all this bullshit from supervisors that the people of the Fire Nation would hate me less if I had a wife and kids, and all this other bullshit nonsense, and I didn't have time to be looking for someone. Not now that our country's in the worse condition than it has ever been in. So I said to just grab the first available person and they did. Unfortunately for me the grab that damned son of a bitch Marukai who only agreed to do it because she assumed she'd be able to do whatever she wanted. And now I'm stuck and I can't get out of it."

"So then why did you agree to it anyways if you hated her so much?"

"It's complicated," he said quietly.

"Somehow I doubt it," she said quietly. "You have a habit of overestimating everything."

"I'm not overestimating," he growled. "It's my father. When my mother left, my father right away started to figure out who I was going to marry. He figured I wasn't going to find a woman once I got older because he assumed no woman wanted to marry me. Literally! That's what he told me! So he talked it over with one of his Noblemen, Piruz, and basically traded me for a promotion. I was stuck. I guess it wouldn't have counted after my father's death, but I guess part of me wanted to keep him happy, so I went through with it. But now I'm stuck with that crazy bitch and she's such a busybody I can't stand it! She's been cheating with this guy she's been seeing for a long time and why she didn't just marry him is beyond me, but it's getting to the point where she's involving herself into everything I do. If I hadn't gone right away when the priestess came to tell me Hiashi had died, I would have never known because that bitch was trying to get rid of them!"

"So… you married her because you wanted to make your father happy?" Mai said in disbelief. "But, your father—"

"Is dead? Never liked me? I know," he interrupted. "He told me right before he died."

"Zuko, I'm so sorry—"

"I was going to carry out his plan to invade the Earth Kingdom. I was willing to do whatever it took. But he just lost it. He was dying and didn't know I was there… or if he did, he didn't care. I will never forget what he told me… he said I was a failure, and that he had no son. I thought doing my best and doing the things he wanted me to do would help me, but in the end, he's still dead, and I don't even know if I should be upset that he's dead or not. He never cared for me so why should I care about him?"

"Zuko—"

"And now whenever I see that damn face of hers, all I can think of is how my father hated me so much he thought no one would like me! And she doesn't help with all that complaining she does and all the problems she's caused me! And that damn kid of hers! Everyone thinks it's mine, but no one makes a point about how it looks nothing like me!" He flipped himself over and buried his head into his hands. "I'm stuck and I can't do anything about it." Zuko sighed heavily and rubbed his eyes in exhaustion. It was only then he realized how much he was bottling up, how much he really hated Marukai and why he hated her.

"I don't hate you," Mai said quietly. "Why didn't you ask me?" His hands dropped from his face and turned to look at her.

"What?" he exclaimed in surprise.

"I'm just saying," she said sheepishly and refusing to turn and look at him. "You probably could have picked someone you tolerated."

"I'll be honest, though, I wasn't quite thinking of someone who would use to throw rocks at me," he said dryly. "Besides, I haven't seen you in a while, so I wasn't even sure where you were."

"Well, since you threw Azula in jail I lost my only line of information about you," she smiled.

"Sorry about that," he mumbled. "I know she was your friend, but—"

"Please," she scoffed jovially. "Azula's one of those people who you're only friends with because you don't want to get trampled on. To be honest, she was too high maintenance. And besides, remember how she used to torture us?"

"Yes," he said calmly, but he wanted to laugh. "All the times she tried to get us together—"

"Like when she put an apple on my head and set it on fire?"

"Or when she and Ty Lee pretended you sent me a card for White Day?"

"Or the time she locked us in the closet?" The two of them laughed as they reminisced of embarrassing times of their childhood. The two of them glanced at each other for just the slightest amount of time, but it was enough to brush their faces with the lightest shade of scarlet.

"I hope you're enjoying yourself," he said quietly under his newly long hair, which served a useful purpose of hiding his mortification. "I know you weren't earlier, but I missed this side of you."

Mai smirk slightly and leaned in to his arm. "I missed you, too," she admitted. "I guess that's kind of why I took a job in the palace to begin with." Zuko kept his head low, but he turned it slightly to look at her. She was looking back with an unadulterated affection he had never in his life seen before, and suddenly he felt a twinge of an emotion he had not felt in such a long time. He was happy. Mai's hand gently settled itself on his jaw and she lifted his face to meet hers. He smiled back at her with a smile he had not displayed earnestly in such a long time. He wanted to kiss her, and he thought he was, but from out of nowhere, and from no control of his own, his hand opposite to her suddenly swung inward, striking her harshly in the jaw. She screamed when his hand collided with her cheek, sending her stumbling backwards several paces.

"WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH YOU?" she snarled so loudly it echoed out into the sky. Zuko stared wide eyed at her and looked down at his harm which would not move.

"Mai, I swear, I didn't do that!" he cried. "I don't know what happened—"

"DAMN IT!" she snarled, rubbing the spot his hand struck. "I thought—"

"Mai, stay where you are!" he ordered her. He suddenly knew what was going on. And as if his mind was channeling his thoughts, he suddenly found himself being dragged to the ledge of the ship by the arm so quickly he only had time to grab onto the edge before he could be flung off. His arm was fighting him and he tried to fight it, trying his best to weigh himself down so that he would not slip off the ship.

"Zuko, what's going on?" Mai said in a state of panic. Zuko grunted loudly as he continued to fight the arm that was desperately attempting to drag him into the long plummet into the icy waters that slapped against the ship. With all he could muster he managed to push himself away from the ledge of the ship, crashing into the wall behind him. His arm was still lost from his control. Zuko flexed his fingers in an attempt to regain control but he tried to no avail, instead his forearm decided to bend itself a quarter of the way through. "Oh my god!" Mai shriek as she watched in horror Zuko crying out in pain. She stepped backwards to go back into the ship for help, but suddenly she was overcome, and with no will of her own her hand rose to fire several blades in his direction. "Zuko!" she called out to him. His head shot up from his arm just in time to see the blades coming after him. He dodged all but one that hit him in the arm he could not control.

"Shit!" he growled, pulling the blade from his arm habitually. But that was a bad idea. From the wound came more blood than there should have been. Like a fountain, pints of blood shot out in a stream much too perfectly. His hand shot quickly over the entry would to keep as much blood in as he could, resting all his weight on his arms to assist. "Mai, get help!" he shouted to her. "The Resistance is here!"

'-'

Very short chapter, yes, but I liked it, heck. Umm, not much to say here, like always, please go to my deviant art page, if you have any suggestions for drawings, please tell me, and as always please review. Until next time, Signing Off.


	13. Attempted

Disclaimer: The following chapter is entirely fictitious. Any similarity to the history of any person living or dead is entirely coincidental and unintentional, except when specifically noted otherwise in the cast and crew credits. All celebrity voices are impersonated and no celebrities have endorsed any aspect of this fic.

Chapter Twelve: Attempted

'-'

"Wait, they're here right now?" Mai exclaimed. She clutched her wrist where her holster was and pulled out all the knives to prevent any more surprise triggering.

"Mai, go get help!" Zuko yelled at her again. It did not happen right away but he was suddenly overcome with nausea and dizziness from the unexpected loss of blood. The periphery of his vision was fading black ever so slightly as his head became heavier, but he would not allow himself to pass out. Mai had not moved from her spot and he assumed it was some sort of manipulation not of her own. "Mai, try and get help!"

"I can't!" she snapped at him. "I can't move!" Zuko picked his head up and indeed Mai was being dragged to the floor by an invisible hand. His eyes darted around, looking for the force behind the hands. He watched Mai fighting whatever it was that was holding her down, grabbing onto the walls next to her and trying to pull herself up, but it was then he realized that whoever it was, they were not very good if the two were able to fight their bending.

"Where are you?" Zuko bellowed to whoever was in the shadow. "You fucking cowards! If you're real fighters you'd come out and kill me yourself!" He received no verbal response, only a physical response in the form of his arm attempting to wiggle its way from underneath him. "You're cowards and you're weak!" Zuko repeated loudly. "You can't even keep us under your control!"

"Zuko, what are you doing?" Mai snarled at him when she finally managed to drag herself to her feet. "Stop antagonizing them!"

"Get out here you damn Water Tribe peasant!" he yelled loudly, sure that there was a waterbender among the attackers because of the unusual amount of blood he had lost. "You're pathetic and weak!"

"Stop it, Zuko!" Mai hissed, but Zuko may have been onto something.

"Nayeli, get back here!" a male voice hollered from above them and from the roof above came a pale woman with jet black hair, black lips, and thick make-up around her piercing violet eyes, landing like a cat in front of Zuko and Mai. She hissed like one at Zuko and swung her arms in a circular motion to draw the ocean water to her. She froze it into a skate ramp and bended the blood on the floor into a weapon against the two of them. Taking the shapes of large shards, the girl flung the new weapons quickly in their direction, but the shards were melted by Zuko, who jabbed the air several times to create a shield of fire for them. Though she had removed all the arrows from her holster, Mai stepped in front of Zuko and shot the arrows she had in her hand at the girl, but the purple menace managed to take control of her arm at the last second.

"Water beats fire," the girl cackled in a voice that matched her cat stance. "And Resistance beats you!"

"Nayeli, you dumb bitch!" a teen back flipped from the roof. "Make a move already!"

"You take the chick!" she hollered at him. "He's already bleeding!"

Zuko was not up for fighting at that moment, but he had no choice. At the risk of dying from a normally menial flesh wound, Zuko charged after the girl with an upper cut of fire, but to his surprise and relief, she did not try to bend him, but instead dodged his attack with the ocean water she had bender earlier.

"Take him out already!" the other bender commanded at the girl who managed to get Mai under his own control. "Quick lollygagging!"

"He's harder than it looks, Peng, you ass!" the girl snarled at her partner. She attempted once again to bend the blood out of Zuko's arm, but he reacted quickly enough to cover the wound with the palm of his hand.

_These people are ridiculous!_ Zuko thought to himself. It was so pathetic Zuko wanted to laugh in their face, if he was not already forcing himself to remain conscious. Since Gingitsune had warned him the Resistance would be after them he made it a habit to keep the gun he owned with him at all time. "Let go of Mai!" he growled at the man holding Mai against the wall. "You're only after me."

"How stupid do you think we are?" the guy said softly. "We're not just here for you. The girl knows, so she goes, too."

"The girl?" the waterbender giggled. "She's six years older than you!" The two began to bicker, but they were distracted. Zuko glanced over to Mai and she returned a look that they could both agree they were not in any danger, especially if these kids did not use themselves to their full potential. He carefully watched to two of them pay no attention to him as he cautiously slipped his hand into his robe, sliding his finger into the trigger. He believed he only had one chance to make any move, for if he was not successful then they might stop messing around. With as much accuracy as he could muster he shot at the guy twice in the abdomen. The girl shrieked and immediately took control of him and was ready to throw him off the side of the ship but Mai, who had finally been released from the guy, quickly shot up and threw the remaining daggers she had directly at her, landing most of them in her torso and only two in her face.

Zuko walked over to the man who was still alive and stood over him. "How stupid of the Resistance to send fresh meat out to kill me. I honestly expected better."

The man snorted and spat a blood coated loogie at Zuko's feet. "_Casse-toi__, Zuko. Il n'a pas d'importance parce que la Résistance toujours gagnera_." Whatever he said, Zuko did not care. He pointed the pistol directly at the man and shot him pointblank. He remembered that Mai was still standing next to him and although they had to she was still staring in what seemed to be shock at what they had just done.

"Mai, are you alright?" he asked her quietly, quickly turning to see if she was okay, but as soon as he did his entire head began to spin and he suddenly found himself losing his balance and falling into the railing.

"Zuko, are you okay?" she reciprocated the question, rushing over him to attempt to pull him up. "You're freezing! And you're really pale! How are you feeling?"

"Not good," he grumbled, rubbing his available hand on his face. He began to feel a lump in the back of his throat, the kind that he knew meant that he wanted to throw up, but he forced himself not to, holding his breath and attempting to keep his head from getting any heavier. He let himself slide to the ground so he laid flat on his back, which ameliorated most of his nausea, but it did not stop his head from allowing his eyesight to swirl in all directions. "Mai, they're dead, so don't worry about them," he reassured her. "But you need to go get someone, anyone, please. Those two were amateurs so they couldn't have kept it too quiet. See if anyone may have woken up."

'-'

He heard a bang echoing outside his room. Zuko's assistant shot up from his slumber and looked around to see nothing. _It's fricking Zuko fricking Mai_, he grumbled in his mind. "Shut up, both of you," he mumbled out loud, violently rotating his body and slamming his head into his pillow. "_I_ have to wake up tomorrow." He closed his eyes again and heaved a deep breath in an attempt to fall back asleep but a sudden surge of adrenalin rushed through his veins when another bang echoed loudly down the hall. _That came from upstairs… Something's not right…_ He kicked his covers off his legs and quickly threw his robe on. He reached for any sort of weapon he could get, which happened to be a small glowing monkey statue, and cautiously opened his door to make his way down the hall. He saw nothing just yet, but he made his way down the hall and up to the entrance where he saw the door to the deck open. "This ship is armed!" he croaked loudly. He coughed to clear his throat and said in a deeper tone, "So you better surrender now! You can't reach backup!" He jumped out the door, monkey in hand and was ready to strike but the only thing that was standing outside was Mai hunched over. "Good lord, Miss Mai, you scared the shit out of me!" he hissed, dropping the monkey, but suddenly his eyes caught on to a frozen ramp, large dents in the side of the ship, and a dark puddle of something he could not recognize.

"Get help!" Mai barked at him. "Zuko needs help!"

"OH! Oh god, what the hell happened out here!" the assistant exclaimed, feeling a twinge of nausea at the sight of what he assumed was blood because of its proximity to two dead bodies of people he had never met before.

"You, go wake up the physician!" he heard Zuko say slowly. "Right now!" He could not hold it any longer. Risking more dizziness, he rapidly pulled himself to the ledge, his stomach releasing all its contents into the ocean below.

"Geeze!" the assistant exclaimed loudly. "Yes, physician! Right!" He stumbled slightly for he had to remind himself what he was supposed to do and ran back into the ship, shouting loudly for the physician who was on the second floor.

"I am so sorry, Mai," Zuko apologized to her while trembling uncontrollably. "I shouldn't have dragged you into this. It was stupid of me, and they could have really hurt you—"

"Zuko, save your energy," she cut him off. "Besides, if I wasn't here then who knows what could have happened."

"They wouldn't have killed me, that's for sure," he mumbled quietly.

"It would have been two against one, and you got the weaker one," Mai frowned. "And you lost a lot of blood from a cut that would have never bled that much, and so quickly."

"I think I'm going to be sick again," he muttered under his breath, bracing himself as his throat began to contract, but nothing came.

"If you're going to throw up again, I'm going to leave," she said jokingly. "Lay back down, Zuko, you'll feel better."

"I'll wait here until the physician gets here," he responded. Mai did not bother to protest Zuko's refusal. Hesitantly, she placed her hand gently on his back, unsure of how he would respond, but he did not protest. In fact he enjoyed the comforting rub; it made him feel cared for.

"What are we going to do with those two?" Mai asked quietly, gesturing her head to the two bloodied corpses sprawled next to them. "Do we wait until we get to land and give them a proper burial?"

"No," he responded roughly. "They don't deserve it. Don't touch them. Let someone else take care of them."

"They're going to begin to smell. Shouldn't we take care of them now?"

"It won't matter, they'll be fine."

"OKAY, YOU, I'LL BE OKAY!" the angry voice of the physician echoed loudly from the corridor entrance. "I'm a doctor, I think I can handle dead bodies!" The two of them rounded the corner and the physician quickly made his way to Zuko without even batting an eye at the two strangers lying next to him. "Face me," the physician commanded quickly. Zuko slowly turned himself around and the man quickly grabbed his wrist with two fingers, muttering under his breath as he watched his small stopwatch. "Your heart rate is slow, but your heart is pounding hard! Did you cut an artery or something?"

"It was them," Zuko answered, flicking his finger to the cadavers behind him. "It came from the cut on my other arm."

"That diminutive wound?" the man gasped. "That cut could not do this much damage if it went all the way through to the other side! What happened?" Zuko and Mai exchanged looks and both knew they could not say anything, for if they did, they might not be as fortunate the next time, nor would they be the only ones who will get hurt in the process.

'-'

"What? NO! I was told I didn't have to kill him anymore!" Kurogane exclaimed to the woman at the desk who had called her in. "What happened?"

"I'm sorry, Marks Kurogane, but the two didn't make it back," the secretary said calmly. "Not _everyone_ can kill the Fire Lord for their entrance project to the Marks Program." Her last words were seasoned with a hint of bitterness. Kurogane rolled her eyes in exasperation and slammed her fist on the counter.

"No! I was told I didn't have to kill him anymore!" she barked. "You don't understand! He's heading south right now and he's going to ruin my next mission! I was under the impression that I didn't need to worry about him! What happened?"

"I don't know," the secretary shrugged. "All I was told was that Gai-Nayeli and Tǔ-Peng sent in their application reserving the Fire Lord as their entrance project but the two did not come back."

"Who the hell approved their admittance request?" she snarled. "I had to jump through fucking hoops of fire to get the Fire Lord as _my_ admittance assassination! Why the hell would they give it to fucking amateurs?"

"I don't know!" the lady said slowly but sharply. "I don't go over the admission requests, I'm just the secretary! The Marks Program committee takes care of it, go take this up with them."

"No! How hard can it be to kill someone!" she continued to yell. "It's okay if it's someone insignificant but it's the goddamned Fire Lord! They should have taken care of this."

"Ma'am, I'm sorry, but I don't know what to tell you—"

"No, this is exactly what happened the last time! I spent years trying to find Hiashi and what do they do? They give her assassination to four freaking other wannabe assassins who couldn't kill a fly who was stuck to the wall!"

"Which is why they told me to tell you that you're supposed to take care of Fire Lord Zuko and Mai."

"Yes, but now there's not enough time to get them all! I had it planned out before they told me I didn't have to kill the two but now, ugh!" She slammed her fist into the counter top again and grunted loudly in frustration. The secretary rolled her eyes and grabbed several papers from the cubby next to her.

"Would you just fill these out?" she sighed histrionically, handing her a quill. Kurogane snatched the feather from her hand and quickly filled out the paperwork.

"Damn kids," she mumbled as she handed the quill back to the secretary.

"By the way," the woman said stiffly, "High Master Keme wanted me to give this to you." She handed her an envelope with a wax seal, imprinted with the symbol of the Resistance. "He said for you to read it as soon as you could." Kurogane hesitantly took the letter.

"Okay," she said slowly, turning to the door of the office and exiting as quickly as she could. No one was coming down the hall and she had been the only one in the office so she knew there would be no one to see her, leaning against the cold grey stone and with a trembling hand, she tore open the envelope to read what was inside:

_Kurogane,_

_I know you do not want to go through with your assassination of the Southern child and I have to say, you have to do it for the sake of the world. And I will also add you will best follow orders, for if not, you will suffer for your disloyalty. You would not want a repeat of last night, although I would not mind in the least bit._

_Keme_

'-'

EPICALLY LAME, this chapter was. No, nothing happened, mostly this was all fluff and filler, but it's mostly to finish off what I left off yesterday. NEHO, like always, please review, I have a deviant art page, and if you have any drawing suggestions… Until next time, Signing Off.


	14. Tough Decisions

Disclaimer: The following chapter is entirely fictitious. Any similarity to the history of any person living or dead is entirely coincidental and unintentional, except when specifically noted otherwise in the cast and crew credits. All celebrity voices are impersonated and no celebrities have endorsed any aspect of this fic.

Chapter Thirteen: Tough Decisions

'-'

Kurogane laid back and looked up at the stars above her, admiring how many she could see. Her skin could not have been rawer, since she had spent hours in the nearby hot spring, attempting to scrub off the remnants of Keme from her body, but she could not shake off the feeling of discomfort, even if it had happened so many other times before. And now she was given a job she could not refuse, though she wanted to. Though she always dreamed of becoming an assassin for the greatest organization to ever be created on their planet, she began to wonder why. As any line of work went, she enjoyed what she did, but for the life of her she could not get over the moral aspect, if maybe what she was doing was wrong.

On the one hand, she kept the world in order. From what she saw, people who were born from mixed race parents never did well. Normally the family and friends always had a certain disdain for the children in question and the parents of the children. And hatred for those people always led to trouble. Trouble between races was one of the reasons that started the war, the Fire Nation believing they were superior to everyone else. Separation was indeed best, especially since such a young population did not quite know how to coexist with each other.

Still, on the other hand, what happened to those who love those mixed breed children? Kurogane read the file of the family she was to kill and she believed in her best judgment that the family should live. They did nothing to affect the balance of their village, and in fact the village had nothing but praise for the couple. It was an infant. What could an infant possibly do? It was not even a bender, so how big of a threat could the child be?

And that was not the only child she had to kill. Not only did she have to kill the southern baby, her parents, her parents' family, the Fire Lord and his mistress, but Hiashi's remaining children and husband and her sister. Never did she have such a caseload, and never so close together. And absolutely never did she have to kill children. She always figured it was at least a little fair if her victims fought back, but children, they were not even a player.

"I was wondering where you went," a familiar voice chuckled from atop her. The girl took a spot right next to her friend and sprawled her arms and legs out into the grass. "What are you doing outside?"

"I was bathing in the hot spring," she said to her silver haired counterpart. "I needed to… think." She would never dare speak ill of Keme, especially in front of Darja, a woman who idolized him so much. Even if she did say what he does to her, she would never believe her.

"So I heard through the grapevine that you've got quite a case," Darja sighed, resting her arms behind her head. "What is it, like, fifteen people?"

"More like twelve, I think," she corrected. "And I have to work quickly."

"So why aren't you out right now?" her friend frowned. "Shouldn't you be getting started?"

"I don't have to right now, and even if I did, it wouldn't matter," she grunted. "Even if I had one of those high powered flying machines we've seen in the over worlds, well, they'd still beat me to the other family before I. I won't be able to take them all at once, and by that time they'll already know my tricks." She sighed loudly in depression and continued, "Besides, I don't know if I can take the life of a child."

"Excuse me, lady?" Darja coughed in surprise. "What are you talking about? It's mudblood and magblooded kids we're talking about. If they're not with us, then they're not worth keeping. Besides, those mongrel bastards need to die, so it's much easier to get them when they can't defend themselves."

"I guess, but I don't know, I just find it fairer if they get to at least defend themselves, you know? It doesn't seem as juvenile or deceptive. Kind of like sucker punching someone."

"Well, sucker punching isn't all that bad," her friend tried to say comfortingly.

"No, it is always bad," Kurogane said roughly. "Fighting a one-sided fight has no dignity in it. And how can we go ahead and justify our cause if we fight such one-sided fight?"

"Isn't that what you do on a daily basis, though?" Darja asked. "I mean, we train in our element longer than most people do, and we learn all this other stuff like bloodbending and junk just so we can beat our enemy quickly. Come on, we've fought five to one fights and still come out winners because the regular benders aren't very good and all they know is their regular element. I would think that those are one-sided fights, too, if you think about it. We sort of have an unfair advantage over them. And you've fought them before, so why do you care about unfair advantages?"

"Those are adults, though," Kurogane answered. "At least they can try and fight back. With children, well, they really can't."

"Well, don't think of them as kids, just think of them as dolls," Darja shrugged. "They shouldn't have any issues."

"It's not only that, but parents are always overprotective of their children, obviously, so I'm going to have a harder time trying to get to them."

"But you're really good at what you do. You're like the best of the best! Why else would you be the only one Keme trusts with this job?"

Kurogane wanted to vomit at the sound of his name. "He doesn't trust me," she mumbled quietly. "He just knows I'll do it."

"Which I would equate to trust," Darja said cheerfully, but there was nothing cheerful about it to Kurogane, who felt nothing but the need to continue to scrub herself clean again. Darja untangled her arms from behind her head and raked her fingers through her hair. "Ugh, I need a bath," she said, smearing her oily fingers together. "The hot springs don't sound too bad right now."

"You do whatever," Kurogane muttered. "I'm going to stay out here for a while."

"This isn't just about that baby, is it?" Darja asked quietly. "You're still upset about killing that magblood Hiashi, aren't you?"

"A little," she said honestly.

"What? Still? Really? Why?"

"With the questions?" Kurogane breathed angrily. "Do you even have to ask?"

"Oh, is this going back to that whole Hykiru think? That was your own damn fault for going out with a fucking Fire Nation person."

"I didn't want to," she growled. "I wasn't thinking—"

"Hell, I am so surprised Keme let you out of that one!' Darja laughed. "Seriously, I thought he was really ready to kill you! He's soooo intent on keeping the nations separate, but he must have been really nice to let you go." Kurogane clenched her jaw tightly, attempting to stifle the spring of horrid memories of the day Keme did find out about her relationship.

"_If you so desperately wish to fuck around with people of the opposite race, then I might as well exploit it, you little tramp!"_

"Of course," she said sardonically. "Keme is something."

"Man, why are you still obsessing over it?" Darja spat, shoving her friend's shoulder. "So she apparently defended you from him one time, what's the big deal?"

"The big deal is that magblood or not, she helped me, even though she didn't know me. I'm starting to wonder if what we're doing is the right thing. Killing off people who aren't really doing any harm to us…"

"No harm?" Darja snickered lightly. "You do remember how many people she killed, right?"

"Those were all gangsters, and in her defense, one of them was a mudblood."

"So? So she killed _one_ mudblood out of, what, one, two, three… five people she murdered? I don't think one mudblood justifies anything."

"Other than that, she was nice to me. She actually was on my side. Who knows, with convincing she could have joined us. She was so willing to be accepted for whom she was and I think she could have found it with us. But we didn't even give her a chance."

"She would have said no," Darja rolled her eyes. "Besides, what's the big deal of her saving you from Hykiru? You were already finished with your training by then; you could've taken him in a fight anyways!"

"Yes, but—"

"Besides! You killed him like a few months later anyways, didn't you? So what exactly did she save you from? She punched the guy in the face once and you were left alone with him after that, and you took care of him so easily! He wasn't even a threat to you!"

"That's true, but—"

"What do you owe her? You owe her absolutely nothing. You would've taken care of him yourself eventually. It wasn't as if it was hard to kill him, remember?"

Kurogane thought for a moment and remembered the day she killed Hykiru. It had been only a few months after the war really ended and it was another one of those days where he became extremely inebriated. He had thrown himself on her, expecting her to fall into submission, but she blatantly refused. So instead, she grabbed his head and crushed his skull into his brain and left. Indeed, it was not so hard.

"_Eeeeny_ways," Darja stretched, "she was nothing more than a mutt, get over it."

"Yeah, but would you have helped me if you saw Hykiru attacking me?"

Darja pursed her lips together and thought for a moment. "Mmm, maybe, I mean, don't get me wrong, I would, but from what I know about Hykiru I probably wouldn't intervene, I already know you'd be able to handle it."

"Okay, but what about someone else? Like Keme?"

"Keme? Please, he wouldn't hurt a fly! Besides, if he even did do something to hurt you, I would probably assume you deserved it, no offense."

Kurogane eyed her friend, or rather, lack of friend, that lay next to her. After all her thinking, all her memories, all that she remembered of people who have passed before her and how they treated her, she realized what was going on. She knew for a fact that what she was thinking, all her anarchical thoughts were dangerous and foolish and though they were technically the right thing to do, doing her job was the only safe option. She knew, then, what she had to do. "Of course," Kurogane said under her breath. "None taken."

'-'

This is actually an epic part in the story, although I'm not sure how epic. I'll probably be adding a picture of Darja later to my deviant art page, but we'll have to see about that. To Moonlight, yes, Keme is a complete douche, especially for an airbender. NEHO, like always please review, visit my deviant art page, and any art suggestions are appreciated. Until next time, Signing Off.


	15. Revelations

Disclaimer: The following chapter is entirely fictitious. Any similarity to the history of any person living or dead is entirely coincidental and unintentional, except when specifically noted otherwise in the cast and crew credits. All celebrity voices are impersonated and no celebrities have endorsed any aspect of this fic.

Chapter Fourteen: Revelations

'-'

The following day Zuko woke up much later than he ever had before. He tried recalling why he woke up in the physician's office but then he remembered why: last night he was almost killed, though almost was most certainly a hyperbole, considering who tried to do it. Even if he was not in any danger as of right now he was still lucky that the Resistance members that were sent were not very good at what they did. The only success they did have was almost draining him of the blood in his body, but once again, he was still fortunate that his assassins were as bad as they were. His whole body was stiff and he could barely move his arms, let alone his head too much. He felt as if he had either exercised too hard or had been beaten senselessly. Either way, he took the deepest breath he could on order to put some feeling into his dead limbs.

"Oh good, you're awake," The physician's voice said from the other side of the room. He was not feeling as dizzy anymore so Zuko lifted his head to the best of his ability in order to get a better look at what the doctor was doing. "I have some good news, based on your weight from yesterday I assume you've only suffered from about fifteen percent or so blood loss, which is very good so you should be perfectly fine in a couple of weeks. You're going to have to eat a lot of protein and iron filled food and I know you don't like it, but your vegetables too." The doctor continued what he was doing while Zuko rolled his eyes at him, "Also, I'm also going to have you drink a lot of liquids, and absolutely NO extraneous activities for the next few days, but other than that, you're going to live."

"No extraneous activities!" Zuko exclaimed in frustration. "But—"

"I know what you do, Fire Lord Zuko, and I've fixed you up through broken ribs, broken feet, torn ligaments, all kinds of burns, sprained muscles, even the common flu, but you never listen to me when I tell you that plenty of bed rest will do wonders for you! For god's sakes, you are getting too old that this whole 'I'm fine' thing is becoming stupider. You're going to get to the point where you're really going to end up hurting yourself if you don't listen to me. Let me warn you, if you decide to do anything extraneous, such as _fighting_, you will get dizzy, and you will pass out. Now that doesn't sound too bad now, but if you're fighting for your life, well, that won't be good for you now would it?" Zuko glowered at his physician who had not turned himself around just yet and growled at him. "Now don't growl at me, mister," the man scolded, finally turning around with a plate filled to the edges with different kinds of meat, eggs, and two slices of bread with butter and a glass of what appeared to be mango juice, "that is very immature, not to mention highly inappropriate for a king. Now I know this is not a normal breakfast, but I cannot risk waiting any longer. You need to eat all of it, no exceptions."

"Can I at least eat outside?" Zuko grumbled nastily. The physician smiled.

"It's getting cold outside, put on a coat," he ordered. "You need to take care of yourself as best as you can." He was unsure if he should laugh or not, but Zuko actually hid a smile and took the plate of food and slipped off the bed. "You stay bundled up, Fire Lord, Zuko!" the physician called. "We'll be landing in only a day or so and I'm not sure what will happen!"

Zuko made his way to the deck of his ship, trying to find a secluded spot. Since they were getting further away from home and closer to the south, the ocean air became much colder, so everyone had migrated from the outside to inside, avoiding any reason to venture out into the chilly air. The bodies from last night were gone, as was the blood, however the dents were not. Zuko assumed the crew may have tossed them overboard, which was fine by him. Scum of that sort did not deserve even a shallow grave. He kept to the back of the ship, as he always did, and slouched down against the wall to eat the stack of food the physician had ordered him to eat. Though he was still a bit nauseous and still had the flavor of it in his mouth from last night he was surprised at how much he managed to keep down, since he assumed he would not be able to eat any of it.

"I see you're up," a familiar voice said from his side. "How are you feeling?"

"Weird," Zuko answered her bluntly. Mai strode over and took the empty seat next to him. "I can't describe it. It's a strange mixture of being nauseous and having an imbalanced head."

"It sounds better than yesterday," she laughed, plucking a piece of komodo sausage from his plate and popping it in her mouth.

"Hey, I'm supposed to eat all that," he frowned. "The physician said so."

"At least you're conscious, and you know what you're talking about," she said to him, continuing to pick at his half eaten plate. "Last night you started out fine, but then you started to sound like you were half asleep. The physician only let you sleep if you were in his office, plus he wanted your feet propped. You fell asleep pretty quickly, though."

"I don't even remember falling asleep. Last night went by in kind of a blur. I think the only thing I really remember is him taking my pulse, and then everything else I can't really…" He thought for a moment and suddenly recalled what had started their evening in the first place. He wiped his only available hand clean on the back of his thigh surreptitiously and gently reached out to her face to turn her towards him. She frowned, for she knew exactly why he had done that.

"It's just a little bruised, it's nothing, really," she understated, shoving his hand away from her face. "I'll be fine. It just needs ice."

"That's not little," Zuko growled quietly, and indeed it was not since the swollen indigo discoloration almost engulfed the whole bottom part of her chin where his hand had landed."I'm sorry. I didn't—"

"It's not even your fault, Zuko," Mai said plainly. "You couldn't control yourself."

"Still, I shouldn't have brought you," he sighed. "I think part of me knew something bad was going to happen. I brought you into danger."

"Zuko, you sound like a girl," Mai rolled her eyes. "I don't think you know this, but I've been so bored at home. I'm actually glad to get out of the house."

"Well, what do you do at home?" he casually asked her, nonchalantly sipping from his cup of mango juice.

"Nothing, mostly," she replied. "I go to work and then I come home. The only reason I decided to work was because my mother kept nagging at me to get married."

"So why don't you just move out?"

"My parents won't let me. She said that wouldn't look good for my father. So of course I have to stay."

"So why did they let you come with me?"

"Well when they heard you wanted me for a very important mission, they were more than happy to let me go. And since you're married, they didn't think twice about it."

"But she's not here," he frowned. "Didn't they know that?"

"They don't need to know everything," she shrugged dully. "Plus I didn't tell them you asked for me directly."

"So you lied to them?"

"I didn't lie, I just didn't tell them the whole story."

"Should I be concerned about this?"

"Why should you be concerned? It's not lying."

"No, but Marukai does the same thing to me. She only tells me half the story, so when something happens that she knew about, she claims I didn't ask, so she didn't tell me. She's always hiding things from me and I've had enough of it. I didn't think you were like that, too."

"I'm not," she said defensively. "I just knew my parents would say this and that about my father's image and our family's image and frankly I think I'm getting too old for that charade. It was understandable at first and I got whatever I wanted, so long as I behaved. But as I'm getting older I realize there's very little I actually want, and if I did want anything, well, it's not too big a deal anymore. And now that I don't have anything I would want, I've found I'm slowly caring less and less about what they have to say about the things I do. Like now, if they were to find out that I went with you while your wife stayed at home, they would be so angry with me. But I'm getting so bored and so tired of all their overbearing actions. Do you know how upset my mother is about me not being married? She tells me how I need to be more social and more docile, and I blame them. So she and my father promised me to Officer Yaozu's son."

"But his son's fifteen!" Zuko exclaimed. "Why would they do that?"

"I don't know, but I don't want to have to take care of someone who's practically ten years younger than me. I'm supposed to be a wife, not a mother."

"Yeah," Zuko chuckled softly. "Could you imagine? You'd have a fully grown child before you could have any children of your own?"

"Yeah, oh, and why bother even having kids? I'll already have one! I'll just be replacing his mother, anyhow." The two of them shared a lighthearted laugh at their jokes and continued to pick at the remaining items on Zuko's plate. "So," Mai said, deciding to change the subject, "what exactly do you expect to find down south?"

"I'm supposed to warn someone who's in the same position as I am," he answered her. "And then I'm supposed to warn Hiashi's family, but I wouldn't know where to start looking for them."

"But wouldn't warning them only make matters worse? I mean, if they didn't know, then that would only bring that whole Resistance group faster, wouldn't it?"

"I'm not sure," he answered truthfully. "Gingitsune just said to warn them. I guess if they're warned then they know exactly what to look for and anticipate. We knew what we were looking for and we managed to escape with our lives, so maybe it will work out for them."

"But the people who came after us were terrible at what they did," Mai said with concern. "Remember the airbender girl? She managed to suffocate us and we couldn't fight that. Who knows what will happen?"

"But it's better if they're warned," he replied adamantly. "She obviously knew something that I didn't, and if she said to warn them, then that's what I'm going to do. If anything we can try and infiltrate the Resistance with the information we have."

"But how do you kill something that can kill you in seconds from across the room? Is it even possible?"

"Maybe," he sighed. "I'm sure she gave us all that we needed to know."

"So what's going to happen if say you do manage to destroy this all powerful resistance group, what are you going to do after?"

"I won't have to worry about it anymore," he simply answered. "That'll be one less thing I have to worry about. Hopefully I'll be able to finish the whole bargaining with the Earth Kingdom, and then maybe the Fire Nation will stop hating me so much."

"Is that it?" she asked coyly. She added nothing else to her question, but he knew, or at least hoped he knew what she was aiming at.

"I'm getting rid of Marukai, that's for sure," he said to her. "I don't want her in my palace anymore. And maybe I'll replace her, for someone I actually like a lot, maybe." Mai did her best to hide her blushing and stifle her smile and reached back to his plate at the same time Zuko was, the two of them inadvertently aiming for the same piece of sausage as each other. Mai took the piece, however, instead of eating it herself, she placed it in Zuko's mouth instead, smiling another of her rare grins he only recently realized he missed. He hoped, then, that the two would make it out of their problem alive, if only to keep Marukai from assuming the throne, but mostly so that for once, he could be happy.

'-'

_I only hope that what I'm doing doesn't come back to bite me in the ass_, she thought quietly in her mind as she walked down the cold and bleak corridor to the last place she wanted to be. _If I fail this… I know… I just have to ignore my better judgment and pray I… I'm doing the right thing._ She knocked on the door to the small office waiting on the other side. She took a deep breath when she heard the voice from inside beckon her in.

"Marks Kurogane," Keme smiled his maniacal grin from under his paperwork, acting as if there was no secrets to hide, "so nice of you to stop by. I assume you have good news for me?"

"Yes," Kurogane forced herself to say, swallowing the dry lump in her throat. "I thought about what you said, about me being hesitant to kill the children you've told me to kill, and you were right. But what I think does not matter. I understand I have a mission I need to go through with and the Resistance comes first. So even though I may not agree with it I will do it nonetheless. I will kill them all." Keme stopped writing and looked up at her with a quizzical look.

"Well, that is not exactly what I wanted to hear," he said with a strained sense of confusion, "but that is better than refusing, I suppose. I expect them dead soon."

"I will do my best, sir," she said once again forcefully. "But after all, I will definitely be outnumbered. Who knows what could happen."

'-'

Epically lame chapter, but I was hoping to post a chapter before The Last Airbender movie came out. I've got my ticket already for the midnight screening and I'm revving to go! I can't wait! I don't care what people are saying about the whole racist thing, they've got a Mexican playing Yue, so I'm perfectly fine with that. Plus Toph's supposed to be Asian, so I am also happy with that. Well, that and the fact that Zuko's being played by Dev Patel. Double epic win for me! I'm über-excited! I just **PRAY** with all my heart that it doesn't suck as bad as the reviews say it is. I would be devastated if it was... As to Midnight, yes, Darja is a total tool and jerk for standing up for Keme and his douchebaggy ways, but even evil people have followers. It's tragic, but oh so true. I mean, look at devil worshipers. I mean, even if you don't believe in the whole heaven/hell thing why would anyone want to worship the supposed prince of darkness? It's like those same idiots you see parading in the white cloaks down in Skokie. Freaking gets me mad… but I digress. Need to go and calm myself. NEHO, like always, please leave a review, check out my DA page, any art suggestions would be great, and that's it (I think). Until next time, Signing Off.


	16. Interruptions and Distractions

Disclaimer: The following chapter is entirely fictitious. Any similarity to the history of any person living or dead is entirely coincidental and unintentional, except when specifically noted otherwise in the cast and crew credits. All celebrity voices are impersonated and no celebrities have endorsed any aspect of this fic.

Chapter Fifteen: Interruptions and Distractions

(apologies, this chapter is deceptively long)

'-'

Zuko stretched his arms in exhaustion over his head and took in a deep breath to balance his skull. The air was slightly chilly and there was a small amount of snow that blanketed the ground. He was not surprised that once they had docked they were greeted with hostile eyes and devilish stares from the locals. He had only been there once before but he remembered why they hated him so much, or why a Fire Nation ship may send flashes of dreadful memories to the locals.

"Are you sure you're at the right place?" Mai asked him calmly at his side. "What if who you're looking for isn't here?"

"I know they're here," Zuko answered her quietly. "I've been keeping an eye on them for a while. I know, I shouldn't have," he quickly added when she frowned. "But I needed to keep an eye on them just in case. They're here, but I don't know quite where yet."

"And how do you expect to find them? Just knock on every door and see who comes out?"

"No. But I might have to. These people aren't exactly happy to see me here." He took another deep breath and bit his lip as the ramp to his ship was lowered on the dock. It was going to be a long day, he was sure of it, but he was unsure as to how long it would really be. The moment his foot hit the bottom of the ramp whispers and murmurs began to escalade, an earlier boisterous city now dwindled down to almost dead silence, minus the undertone of voices he could clearly hear. "Listen!" he bellowed over the voices. Everyone stopped their mild gossiping and turned to face him with looks of disgust and confusion. "I am Fire Lord Zuko. I am looking for the Avatar and his friends. I have an important message to deliver to them." There were no voices, not even whispers, following his request. Everyone in the small village either stared at him in disbelief or exchanged looks with one another. "Did you not hear me?" he exclaimed again. "I said—"

"We heard what you said!" a heavy looking man yelled back. "But don't act like you're not Fire Nation and don't act like nothing happened. Last time you were here you destroyed half our village looking for the Avatar! Why do you think we'd tell you where he is?"

"I have something I need to tell him!" he snarled at the man, marching up to him and getting into his face. "He and his friends might be in danger."

"Yeah, probably from you," the man scoffed. "All you Fire Nation people are alike." The crowd of people behind him mumbled in agreement, nodding and shaking their head in distain for the Fire Nation. "You're probably just here to capture him, aren't you? You want him in your clutches and you're probably planning on restarting the war!"

"Restarting the war?" Zuko laughed angrily. "I help end it! Why would I want to start it up again?"

"How the hell should I know?" the man answered. "I don't know what's going on in your head. All I know is that you're all untrustworthy!" Mai stood in the background and had not said anything just yet, but when the man said what he did, she let out a soft chuckle. "Excuse me, but what do you think is so funny?" the man snapped at her. "I don't think the murder of our Avatar is something to laugh about!"

"No, that's not why I'm laughing," she said dully. "If we started a war that almost wiped out the entire world before, then couldn't we just do it again? We only have, like, ten people here with us and we're asking for the Avatar. And if he's as good as everyone says he is then we'd need more people. So why would you automatically assume we're here to attack? Or are you just really stupid?" Zuko's face fell in astonishment at her words and so did the man's. "Look, it's only going to be the two of us and I'm sure the Avatar can take care of himself so don't even worry about it."

"Yes, well that may be true," the man stuttered, attempting to find a rebuttal to her comment, "but, still, you know—"

"Can you just lead us to him?" she interrupted his stammering. "We need to tell him something important." Zuko looked around at the people around them and everyone who had been watching decided to forcefully ignore the situation, going about in their daily business as if nothing had happened, but everyone knew there was.

"I don't know where they live," he said sheepishly. "The Avatar usually doesn't live here, normally he comes and goes every year."

"Ugh! You are no help at all!" Zuko exclaimed, exasperated at the man. "The one who argues with us has no idea where he is."

"Well, I don't know where he lives—"

"Go away!" Zuko barked at the man. The man glared at him but finally spun on his heel and stormed off into no particular direction.

"That was helpful," Mai said dryly once the man had stormed off. "Now what do we do?"

"I don't know," he answered. "I guess we could—"

"Zuko?" a voice shouted from across the way, towards the direction of the market place. Both his and Mai's head shot their heads to the sound only to see a dark woman holding a basket. Zuko squinted his eyes to better adjust his vision but suddenly recognized the woman as the Water Tribe girl, whose name he could not remember. "Zuko, is that you?" she repeated, walking closer to the two of them.

"You," he grimaced, attempting to remember her name, "you're—"

"Katara?' she answered for him slowly. "Yes. Why are you here? Should I be concerned?"

"To be honest, yes," he responded earnestly. Katara's face fell and she took a step backwards, but Zuko held up his hand. "It has nothing to do with the Fire Nation, I can promise you that, but this is something that you and all your friends need to hear about."

Katara pursed her lips, but then said, "Well, if you're just here to talk… you caught us on a good day, I guess. Aang is back from his training in the Fire Nation and Tsuchi's returning for a visit, too, but I don't know if—"

"As long as all of you are here," he quickly said. "I don't know how long I have, but I have something very important that could concern you all."

"Okay," she said with worry. "You can follow me to my brother's house. It's nearby. I think he and Tsuchi should be here at any minute, but everyone else is already there." Zuko nodded and gestured to Mai to follow Katara back to her home. Mai raised an eyebrow at him in a silent concern of anything that may have happened between them, but he glared at her in an almost disgusted puzzlement. Mai rolled her eyes as did he and the two followed Katara in silence to the back edge of the small village where many of the few houses were, adjacent to a small forest. The trio made their way up the small path and up to a hut just as small. "I have to tell you now, Zuko," Katara said to him when she placed her hand on the doorknob of the house, "I don't know how everyone else will react to your arrival, but I'm only letting you here because you did help us with ending the war. I can't say how everyone else will feel, though." Zuko nodded reluctantly and Katara turned the knob. "Suki, Aang, I'm back," Katara called to the people currently in the house.

"Hey, Katara," a familiar bald man in an unfamiliar voice chimed cheerfully from one of the chairs in the small den. "Did you get—?" He suddenly cut himself off and released a loud yelp as he stumbled backwards on the chair. "Zuko! What are you doing here? Katara, why would you bring him here?"

"And you thought he wouldn't trust you," Mai mumbled sarcastically under her breath. Zuko shot her a dirty look and turned to watch Katara march into the house, beckoning the both to follow.

"Aang, remember that he helped us end the war," Katara reassured him roughly. "Besides, he says that he has something he needs to tell us."

"Yeah, no one ever explained that to me," Aang glowered.

"And even if he was going to attack us, I saw the ship he came on and it isn't very big," Katara frowned. "He can't have fit that many people on it and he wants to see all of us."

"The war might be over, but I still don't trust him," Aang growled. "Not after all he did to us."

"Aang, you were just at the Fire Nation a few weeks ago for almost a year, going back and forth for the past two years, and not once did he try and get you. Why would he want to try and get you now that you have backup?"

"Then he wants a challenge!" Aang said in a tone that did not convince anyone. Katara rolled her eyes at him and set her basket on the small counter in the small kitchen.

"Where's Suki?" she asked him in an unconcerned voice, ignoring his assumption of attack.

"She's in the back," he replied curtly while not allowing himself to drop a death stare with the Fire Lord. "Sokka should be back with Tsuchi soon."

"I'm not here to take you prisoner!" Zuko snapped at Aang. "Why would I even need you?"

"I don't know, why did you need me before?"

"Because I needed you to get home, but I'm the Fire Lord now so you'd serve no use—"

"Knock, knock!" a woman's voice chimed from the door. "I brought good—." The woman stopped short at the door when her eyes fell on Zuko and Mai. Zuko remembered all the faces of the ones he had tracked but this face was unrecognizable. She did not wear garb from their world nor did her shoes or hair or even makeup match the surrounding city's fashion. However, she knew him. "Zuko?" she said in a questioning tone, squinting her eyes to get a better look at him. "Zuko, that is you, isn't it? But it's Fire Lord now, huh?"

"Normally my subjects bow to me," Zuko said in a low growl at the girl's casual demeanor.

"Yeah, well, see, here's the thing, I don't live here anymore, so you know, you can go ahead and suck it," she smirked in the most earnest of tones. She strutted past the enraged firebender and his friend and parked herself on the long bench with a myriad of bags slung in her arm.

"Who do you think you are, talking to me like that?" Zuko snarled at her, who paid no attention to his ranting.

"Wow, your memory's so bad your cooks probably line your plate with a map to your mouth, huh?" the mystery girl said dryly, provoking a small chuckle from Mai. Zuko shot a glare at her but Mai paid no concern. "See, that's what you get for falling out with my sister." She began pulling the items from her bags out with the aid of the other Water Tribe man, who had just finished talking to Katara in an urgent hush in the kitchen. "Sorry, if I had known you were coming and bringing a friend I'd have brought more stuff for you. You can have my share if you'd like."

"Wait, you're Hiashi's sister?" Zuko exclaimed louder than he had hoped. He remembered the girl who had been Hiashi's sister: she was a myrtle green, wired hair loud mouth whose clothes looked as if they had been created by a blind hog monkey using its feet. But this girl was properly groomed, with normal raven hair actually styled and clothes that looked professionally made, even though he did not know where she could have bought such an outfit, with a voice that contained just the slightest of accents. The girl looked up at her with cockeyed eyebrows and he suddenly realized she was right. Her eyes did not match each other but they matched Hiashi's. "You look... different," he said, managing to correct his surprise. "You're… uh…"

"Clean? Groomed? Well kempt? Well, I think that's the same thing," Tsuchi frowned, scratching her styled hair carefully. "Yeah, the boomslang macaw vomit finally ran its course so I don't stand out like a sore thumb, although I do miss the green. And I haven't spoken our native tongue consistently in a while. I had to learn this other language called English? Apparently 'white is right' in the other world, although I'm not quite sure what that means. All I know is that I'm the wrong ethnicity so I have to blend in if I want to stay alive."

"If you don't mind me asking, _Fire Lord_ Zuko, what exactly are you doing here?" the Water Tribe man with the goatee asked as he walked over to place the other bag on the floor next to the bench. "I mean, the war's over so what exactly would you come back to us for? You have your throne, you have your country, and capturing the Avatar isn't exactly going to do anything for you, so you might as well just leave."

"Sokka, calm down," Katara said softly. "I told you, he said he needs to tell us something important."

"No, Katara, this is exactly like you," the brother snapped at his sister. "You bring an enemy into my house without a second thought! What if he's here to arrest us, huh?"

"Hey, sock-face, calm the fuck down," the strangely dressed woman said roughly. "If he wanted to ambush you guys, wouldn't he have done it sooner?"

"No, Tsuchi, maybe he couldn't find us!" he growled back to her.

"Retard, the Avatar was gone for a hundred years and he found him in three. Plus he has a whole army under his command. Hell, if he really wanted to he could have gathered a whole army and ambush everyone. Oh, that reminds me of something I want to tell you, but first I have goodies!" She organized the items on the small table into five groups, each group containing each item she had. "I brought Coke, cheeseburgers, oh, I took the meat patty out of yours, Aang, and stuck it in Sokka's, and Katara, I know you like the Snickers, so I got you some of those, but I don't know if you'll have enough for the whole year."

"I'm sorry, but are you guys going to ignore us all day?" Mai sighed histrionically. "If I wanted to stand around and be ignored I would have stayed at home."

"Your conversation, can, you know, wait for two seconds," Tsuchi replied harshly to Mai. "I haven't been here in a year and I would like to hang out with my friends before I leave. You're here for forever."

"We might not have forever!" Zuko snapped at the lot of them. His yelling threw him off balance, which Mai sensed and quickly but surreptitiously grabbed the back of his cloak to keep him stable. "Here you all sit and talk all jovially as if me being here isn't that big a deal—"

"I never said that!" Aang barked. "I don't even trust you here!"

"Neither do I!" Sokka added.

"Actually it's not a big deal for me, more of a curiosity," Tsuchi shrugged.

"Well it should be a big deal!" Zuko scolded them. "I'm not here to eat and have fun, I'm here to tell you something important!"

"Oh, I brought my camera, too!" Tsuchi exclaimed, withdrawing a black prism shaped object with a glass eye slightly off the side. "And I made all the families an album, well, except for you, Zuko, 'cuz you know, you fucked up and all."

"What are you—no, you people aren't listening to me!" Zuko groaned. "There's something you all need to know—"

"What's going on?" a woman with short auburn hair suddenly asked quietly as she slipped her way out of a door from the back room. "Can you guys keep your yelling down?" She paused and scanned the room, letting her eyes fall on Zuko and Mai. "What is he doing here?" she said with a slight toxicity.

"We'll explain later, Suki," Tsuchi interrupted Zuko once again. "But first I want to tell you guys something."

"No, I need to speak—"

"I swear to you, you can talk in a bit, but I have something interesting: I was talking to David a few months back and we started talking about wars and I told him about ours and he was telling me that they had this massive war, too, before we arrived, and he started saying stuff about this country called Germ-something, and they had these prison camps where they did awful stuff to people—"

"Those weren't prison camps, they were death camps," Zuko sharply interrupted. Each head in the room turned to look at him. He clearly had his opportunity to convince them to listen. "The country you're talking about is called Germany and they had death camps, designed to kill hundreds of people per day. A man by the name of Joseph Mengele used to run grizzly experiments on the inmates, and those experiments killed people in the worst of fashions." There was a silence that they had not felt before.

"Yeah," the girl said cautiously. "That's exactly what I was going to… when did you learn this? Did you go to Earth, too?"

"No, I haven't," he answered roughly. He had their attention finally. "There's a reason why I'm here and it's not because I'm here to arrest you. You're all in serious danger. You're lives are at stake and you won't be able to see it coming."

'-'

So yes, this was mostly talk about randomness, as it always is, but I wanted to get in another chapter before I went on a brief hiatus. See, I'll be heading out to Comic Con in about two week and after submitting my application in April, I received confirmation in June that I'm going to be performing in the Masquerade thingy on Saturday. I'm going in as Ty Lee and I'll be doing a dance routine. I'll probably suck, but that's okay, I love to dance anyways. Anyways, I've been procrastinating so I need to take the next two weeks to work on a routine, plus I need to edit my music. Then after that weekend I'm going in for nose surgery and I have no idea how long that will take. The doctor said it's NBD and that it's an outpatient thing with very minimal blood loss, nothing major, but I still have no idea how long I'll be out. I'm probably overreacting about the whole thing. I think at the most I'll be out for a day, but that still means I won't be active until the next day, meaning a chapter might not be up until August. But you should all be fine.

Oh, and I went to go see _The Last Airbender_… and my opinion? Meh, it was alright. Why do I say that? Well, first off, I went in with blinders. I figured at first it was going to be one of those things where you had to have seen the series in order to understand what was going on. Then I had to consider: They had to cram about ten hours of a season into an hour and a half. If it had been longer, say, a two or two and a half hour movie, I could probably guess it would have come out much better. But unfortunately they were trying to get a broader audience by aiming at children and let's face it, all kids have ADD practically and can't sit still in a theater for very long, so that time limit really hindered their ability to tell the story well. The name pronunciation, I did have a problem with, but according to the rest of the world… well, Americans are the only ones who are pronouncing it wrong, apparently. That just makes me feel stupid. Another one of the big problems I've been hearing about is the whole ethnicity thing, this and that it's sacrilege about there even being white people in Avatar since it's Japanese or Asian based and they're being racist… And to that I do not agree. Think about it, look at our world. To anyone who believes in the theory of evolution would agree that there is no way that the only thing changing about the people in the different cultures are skin and eye color, it's just impossible. People evolved based on their location on the planet so of course there's going to be variations. Granted, Katara, Sokka, and Aang should not have been white and should have been casted properly according to region, but Caucasians shouldn't have been nixed from the movie altogether. Shoot, if I was going to cast the Avatar movie, you know what I would have done? I would have taken a map of the Avatar world and a map of our world and try and base culture geographically. So white people would probably have stayed in the upper left, so if you're looking at their map, there's two major Earth Kingdom continents, the largest is the one with the Si Wong Desert and Ba Sing Sei and the Earth Kingdom base, I'm talking about the continent to the left of it. That would have been white people since it's similar to Europe. And I probably would have made the Fire Nation Pacific Islanders, since after all, the Fire Nation is an Archipelago. It only makes sense… NEHO, I did hate the parts where they were almost literally just talking into the camera, especially when they did it the first time where the camera was so far into their faces you could swear you see Noah Ringer's lungs through his nose (I swear, that boy has WIDE nostrils!) That was just painful. Still, despite all the negative feedback I'm hearing I am really hoping this movie pulls through, because otherwise we're not going to see a Book Two or a Book Three. They waited on production on the second movie to see how the first one turns up and if it doesn't go well we can all say goodbye to the next Airbender movies. Now I'm sure many of you don't mind there not being a sequel, but think about it: Avatar is a great show and we want everyone to see what a great show it is. Without a successful movie, Avatar will essentially leave the spotlight as a giant fart (Family Guy reference). It's already getting a bad reputation. Do we want to add insult to injury and let it only make half its money back? The other people who aren't fans of the show will never let us live it down if the movie doesn't succeed. Frankly, I say they should make the next two movies anyway but get rid of the biggest flaw to the movie, and that's Shamalama-ding-dong. Forget the actors; if the movie's good enough no one will care about bad acting, just look at Twilight.. actually, I think Twilight's doing so well because about 70% of their cult following doesn't have a mind of their own... NEHO, I think it was Mai who coined the following phrase: I love Avatar more than I hate the movie. Overall I give it a very low B-, but I do that for the sake of our love (and by 'our' I mean mine and Avatar).

No one really cared about that. NEHO, as always, leave a review, look at my deviant art page, and if you have art suggestions I'll be glad to hear them. I may post a picture of Tsuchi in her new outfit, but that all depends on the amount of time I'll have. Until next time, Signing Off.


	17. A Family's Traditions

Disclaimer: The following chapter is entirely fictitious. Any similarity to the history of any person living or dead is entirely coincidental and unintentional, except when specifically noted otherwise in the cast and crew credits. All celebrity voices are impersonated and no celebrities have endorsed any aspect of this fic.

Chapter Sixteen: Family and Traditions

'-'

"You are joking, aren't you?" Tsuchi said without a hint of sarcasm for once. Just a few seconds prior, Zuko had delivered to them the message he was hoping they would heed: their lives were in danger and they would never see the attacks coming. Though he had practically wasted three years chasing the Avatar only to be handed the Fire Lord position, the Avatar had always managed to escape any predicament he was in. But even a force one could not see or expect was challenging to anyone.

"How are we supposed to believe you?" Sokka growled while he viciously intertwined his arms across his chest. "You come into my home and expect me to listen to you? Not after all you did to us."

"You don't understand," Zuko tried to, for once, plead with them. "They are after you guys, specifically. They're after me, too, but not for the same reasons—"

"Okay, I'ma cut you short there, Judas," Tsuchi interrupted with one swish of her hand. "I've been reading this book, called the 'bible' or sommat, and I got to this part where this guy sells out his best friend for twenty silver pieces by signaling these other guys. If I remember properly, that guy died at the end. Kind of seeing where I'm going with this, firecracker?"

"I'm not here to sell you out to anyone!" he yelled, which caused the lights in the room to increase tenfold. "I'm here to warn you for once!"

"But warn us against what?" Katara asked. "Despite them, I would like to hear what you're saying." Every member of team Avatar, including Suki, rolled their eyes in exasperation of Katara's undeterred need to believe in the good of everyone. At first she despised him more than the rest, but her opinion of the confused Fire Lord had changed the day he agreed to help them end the war. Despite her change of opinion, the others were less reluctant, especially Aang, who still did not know why they would even let Zuko be so close.

"You know nothing about them," Zuko started out. "Since the beginning of the war there's always been those who resisted it but they've been nothing more than mere armies gathered by the governments to fight—"

"My father and my wife were some of those people who fought the war!" Sokka spat at Zuko. "If you're trying to make your point you're doing a terrible job at it."

"That's not what I'm getting at!" Zuko spat back. "What I meant is that they were only people that the government could gather for their armies, _including_ the Fire Nation," he quickly added when Sokka's mouth began to fight. "But that was all they were, merely people."

"So, what? You're saying we're getting attacked by monsters?" Aang asked in the most demeaning of tones.

"No," Zuko glowered. "You're being attacked by humans, but they have powers than no human being should ever posses. It's the most elaborate resistance group that has ever existed on the face of the earth."

"That's bullshit, and you know it," Sokka said bluntly. "We were all resistance, what could have been so elaborate about them?"

"You still have that knife that you used to go to each of the other worlds?" Zuko asked him. Sokka's face fell into confusion as he slowly untwined his hands to reach one into the back part of his belt.

"Yeah," he said slowly. "What about it?"

"That knife isn't from the Spirit World, if that's what you thought," he answered. "This group I'm trying to tell you about made that knife so they could broaden their intelligence and to gather tools that no one else had. They're crafty. And worst of all, you thought the Fire Nation was bad, they may want separation of all nations, but they take it much too literally."

"So they're really racist, is that it?" Suki questioned.

"Yes, but that is not 'just it.' They're powerful and will go to any length to separate and destroy anyone standing in their way."

"I can tell you right now your story sounds like a bunch of bullshit to me," Tsuchi sighed histrionically. "Not the whole 'they invented the knife' thing, but the whole racist thing. Why would anyone who wants the war be over be racist? Besides, it's been over for eight years, didn't they get what they wanted?"

"No," Zuko answered roughly. "And why don't you ask your sister about how dangerous they are?"

"Wait, my sister?" Tsuchi growled. "Why the fuck would you be dragging my sister into this? You haven't talked to her in ages! Or did you finally find her in the past year?"

"Wait, you've been talking to her?" Zuko gasped. The forgotten Mai shot her head at him and then back at the strangest of the group then back at Zuko again in disbelief.

"Yeah, like, every year, for the past six years," Tsuchi replied in suspicion. "I made her a photo album for her and the little ones since I take a million pics of them when I go." She pulled a pale red book from one of the bags with the word 'Family' scrawled across in what appeared to be gold or yellow paint. "You can take a look at it if you want, but I still have no idea what she has to do with anything." Without waiting for her to hand him the small book, Zuko quickly strode over to the lot of them and snatched the red hardback from her hands and began flipping through the pages. "Zuko, what does my sister have anything to do with what you're talking about?"

Zuko did not respond, in fact he was not paying any attention to her. His focus was held too much by the booklet he held in his hands of the grey colored pictures Each of the pictures were in such detailed black and white gloss of Hiashi and the family everyone had been telling him about. There was one of Tsuchi with Hiashi, smiling into the picture with their faces squashed together at an odd angle. He saw one of a little girl no older than two with her, what seemed to be, raven hair in an odango style, playing with a doll that he had only seen once in Hiashi's room. Again he saw that same little girl, a little younger, with her arms wrapped around the neck of a boy who was possibly four whose skin and eyes were lighter than hers. He then saw that same little boy embraced by a fairly dark muscular man with a goatee and scruff on his cheeks, both of them happy. There was a similar picture of a black choppy haired Hiashi with the little girl, another with the man and both the children, another with Hiashi, the man, and the girl, and along in that order. In one, Hiashi had a sarong wrapped around her head with several bangs peaking out, looking bitter while the man, who looked just as irked, held the two year old boy who was grabbing his nose. It was a timeline of several other pictures. There was another with her and neck length hair with a forced smile with the same man holding the slightly older boy. Again there was another picture of Hiashi cuddling what he assumed was the baby girl and the man holing the hand of the boy, and it was in that way all the way until the final picture where the whole family was sitting on a bench in what seemed to be their den, a very pregnant Hiashi smiling at the little girl to her left, followed by the man smiling at the young boy who sat despondently in the corner of the bench with his knees drawn to his chest. A mixture of emotions on either end of the spectrum, he could not figure out why.

"Your sister's Hiashi, right?" Mai said for Zuko, who still seemed to be entranced by the book.

"Yeah, and I want to know what's going on with my sister?" Tsuchi asked in a rougher tone.

"I think she was killed," Mai said coolly, but with as much affection as she could properly muster. "By the Resistance." Tsuchi's normally jovial face fell dramatically, staring into Mai's face with horror and disbelief.

"My sister's dead?" she hissed in a low voice coated in incredulity. "I mean, I want to make fun of… it's such a stupid name… my sister? Really?"

"I take it it's been you we need to talk to," Mai said with no enthusiasm and even less sympathy since Zuko was still preoccupied with the red-bound book.

"No, it's all of you," Zuko finally said, slamming the book shut to tear his eyes away from the hypnotic pages. "The Resistance hates half-breeds and anyone who might be from different nations who might get married. So that means all of you." The group exchanged looks and turned their attention back to the firebender. "That's the reason I'm here. Hiashi was killed about a few weeks ago by someone from the Resistance and I was warned that you were all next."

"Alright, that's it, get out of my house!" Sokka exhorted at the pair and pointed to the door. "I don't know who you think you are, coming into my house like this and threatening us—"

"Sokka, he's not threatening us!" Katara defended him. "Zuko, is there any way you can elaborate?"

"Unfortunately, no," he frowned. "I can tell you how surreptitious they are, but I'm not sure how helpful that will be for you."

"I'm sorry, but I need to be alone," Tsuchi said quietly to them all. She gingerly stood up and slid herself to the door, quietly slipping out and closing the door behind her with a slight click.

"Someone should go after her," Zuko said to no one in particular.

"She'll be fine, she can protect herself," Sokka said roughly. "What are you talking about, surreptitious? Do you think we can't handle ourselves?"

"You seriously underestimate us," Aang grumbled as he hyperbolically crossed his arms and legs.

"I'm not underestimating you," Zuko attempted to say calmly, "I am being honest with you. Mai and I were almost killed just coming over here to tell you!"

"What exactly do they do?" Katara asked harshly enough to interrupt the group if unbelievers. "What should we be looking out for?"

"That's the thing, you won't be able to just keep an eye out for them," Zuko sighed in slight appreciation that at least there was one person who potentially believed them. "They've mastered their element and more. They managed to take their bending element and use it in other areas. Like waterbenders can bend plants and anything else with water, and earthbenders can control metal and other earth related things."

"Well that sounds plausible," Katara nodded. "I mean, I've met people who could bend water in plants and Tsuchi can bend metal—"

"That's not it," he interrupted. "They go further than that. I said they've mastered their element and then some. They can control the human body and the mind and you wouldn't be able to know it."

"The mind?" the auburn girl chuckled. "No one can control things with their mind."

"They don't control things with their minds!" Zuko shouted in exasperation. "They can control your mind with suggestion and brainwashing, and—for god's sakes, shouldn't one of you go check on your friend? She's been out there for almost five minutes!"

"Like Sokka said, Tsuchi will be fine," Aang repeated. "You just concern yourself with your psychic stalkers."

'-'

Tsuchi wandered the border of the woods, dragging her hands against the trees and bushes, allowing the bark and thorns dig themselves into her palms. Alas, the moment had come. It was the reason she had left her home world to live in another. But her sister had stayed behind. Granted, Tsuchi believed if anyone were to kill her sister it would be either the Fire Nation army or citizens from the Earth Kingdom, but if what Zuko said was true, neither of that happened. Instead, there were people out there, specifically out there to make sure that people like her will never live long enough to pass away on their own. To her, it seemed a family tradition. Her grandparents, her aunt, her mother, her father, and now her sister, all died before their time. And now she was the only one left. It was a family tradition, she supposed. She was the next one in line.

_Of course_, she stopped to think, grating her arms against the trees while deciding to step foot into the boundaries of the woods. _I would be the last one. My whole family is gone. My aunt, my mother, my father, even my sister. I was just getting to know her and she was turning out to be a really cool person. It was nice for once to have balance. I still have the others… but it's just not the same. I have no more family. I'm alone in the world now. _She held in her tears for as long as she could but she could not help but let them slip. Tsuchi slid down the trunk and curled into a ball and cried into her arms. Despite wanting to be alone, she had hoped someone would have come to comfort her, anyone, even Sokka. But no one came for her. What was she to expect? She was alone now, no one she had but herself.

"HELP!" she suddenly heard from the depths of the trees. "SOMEBODY HELP ME!" Tsuchi shot her head up in the direction of the sound. Her first instinct was to go back, to alert her friends and perhaps receive backup to find the person who needed help. But there was no time. Whoever needed her help needed it right now.

"Hello?" Tsuchi called out to the voice in the woods. "Hello? Who's there?"

"HELP!" the voice continued to holler. Tsuchi wiped her tears away and put on the bravest face she could. Whoever needed her needed to feel confident in their savior.

"Who's out there?" Tsuchi said much more firmly. "Who's there? Where are you?"

"HELP ME! WE NEED HELP!"

"We? Who's there? Who needs help?" She sharply turned around.

"You do."

'-'

Yes, lame indeed, this chapter was, but I was sort of expecting for this to be much longer, because now that I think about it the next chapter might be just as short. N'oh well… sorry for making you anticipate for nothing.

For those who don't know or don't really pay attention, or maybe you're just tuning in, I haven't updated for a while because of Comic Con and nose surgery I had to deal with. I performed as Ty Lee in the Comic Con masquerade, didn't win anything, and I heard it was pretty boring, my dance, but I had fun. As a parody, I did a small Bollywood jive to the song Jai Ho, because Dev Patel did one in _Slumdog Millionaire_. But I had fun and I made new friends too! I'm hoping to do it again next year, but with more people with me. It sucked, though, because I wanted to get my _Zuko's Prequel_ book signed by Bryan and Michael, but they cut the line off before I could get in like! As if it was even that long! Those jerky line people, I hate them. But all in all, it was fun. Can't wait for next year.

The surgery was awful. The doctor did a good job, I guess, not sure what he's supposed to do since I never had surgery before. I think I say it was awful simply because of those grounds. The whole reason I went in for surgery, for those who don't know or for those who want to know, I broke it a few years ago and it healed wrong, so I went in to get it fixed. I've been in my house since last Tuesday so once I stopped sleeping for 18 hours a day, I got to writing this chapter. So here you go. I'll be posting a pic of Tsuchi in a bit, and anything else anyone might request. And like always, please leave a review on your way out. Until next time, Signing Off!


	18. A Real One

Disclaimer: The following chapter is entirely fictitious. Any similarity to the history of any person living or dead is entirely coincidental and unintentional, except when specifically noted otherwise in the cast and crew credits. All celebrity voices are impersonated and no celebrities have endorsed any aspect of this fic.

Chapter Seventeen: A Real One

'-'

"Listen to me, I'm not here to threaten you, I'm here to warn you," Zuko sighed in stress. It was going onto an hour since he had arrived and neither he nor Mai had come close to convincing anyone in the group that they were there to warn them about something real. The only person who believed them so far was Katara and maybe Tsuchi, but she was nowhere to be seen just yet, having stepped out just ten minutes after hearing her sister was dead. "You've seen it yourself, you just don't remember. Think back to when you first got that sword, Sokka. Why were you the one who was holder?"

"Because I was?" Sokka replied caustically. "The sword chose me."

"Do you know why the sword chose you?"

"I don't know, it just did! This is stupid, what are you getting at—"

"Who else tried to grab the sword?"

"I did, and then Tsuchi, if I remember properly," Aang frowned.

"See?" Zuko exclaimed. "And what do you and Tsuchi have in common?"

"Nothing, why?"

"Yes you do." Sokka and Aang exchanged looks of bewilderment accentuated with skepticism. "Both you and Tsuchi can bend more than one element. That's something that the Resistance absolutely hates. The reason why you were able to touch the sword was because you're pureblooded. Aang might be pureblooded, but because he's the Avatar and because he can bend more than one element, he couldn't have touched the sword. Same thing with Tsuchi. Actually, either you or your sister would have been able to take control of the knife, but you tried before your sister so it took you instead."

"So… the sword knew who they were?" Katara whispered inwards.

"Yes, it did. You don't realize what the Resistance is capable of—"

"So wait, this group you're talking about is _actually_ called the 'Resistance'?" Sokka asked whilst cleaning his ear grotesquely with his pinky finger. "Why does that sound familiar?"

"Wait a minute!" Aang cried out, jumping from his slouching to off the couch and startling everyone in the room. "I remember why that sounds familiar! Sokka, remember when we went to that island with the raindrop grass blades and how we went into that cave and we found the knife? You grabbed it and then the wall next to us revealed this text! It said the sword was passed down from the Resistance!" Aang slowly began to contract back into the couch, his face began to fall, and his eyes suddenly began to remember more of what he was talking about. "It said it was made to end the war, and that the four nations would live in peace. But they would be separate. I remember… 'All elements must live on, but only separated.'" Sokka did not change his expression from his sour demeanor, but his eyes implied that he slowly believed what the Fire lord was here to explain.

"Something is going on then," Katara breathed. "If anything, something might happen."

"How concerned should we be?" Suki asked.

"They killed my father, they killed Hiashi, and they almost killed Mai and me while we were on our way over. What else do you want me to say?"

"Wait, _they_ were the ones who killed your father?" Katara shouted from her corner.

"Yes," he answered her sharply. "Who else would have? No one but the Avatar would have had the strength to kill him, so imagine someone with both the ability to freeze a person and with enough manipulative mind powers to keep them from defending themselves properly."

"So wait a minute, so why exactly do they hate us?" Suki asked for clarification. "I don't really understand. We aren't mixed blooded, so what would they gain by killing us?"

"Well," Zuko began to say, but then he suddenly drew a blank. He was sent to warn them, but then that garnered a question he did not know the answer to.

"Well, aren't you all married?" Mai intervened. The group exchanged looks again.

"Aang and I aren't yet," Katara frowned. "Since the end of the war Aang's been travelling to master the elements."

"But I thought he already mastered them?" Zuko asked.

"I kind of did," Aang answered. "Don't get me wrong, Katara and Tsuchi were good teachers, but—"

"But, we weren't masters," Katara finished for him. "I was still a beginner myself, and most of what we learned was from waterbending scrolls, not an actual teacher. Aang mastered earth, oddly enough, but that was because Tsuchi learned from her grandfather."

"And Tsuchi taught herself to firebend by watching Fire Nation soldiers, but never actually learned it," Aang continued. "So I knew the stuff, and I was good, but it was amateur at best. My forms were crap so I travelled around to correct my forms."

"He just got back a year ago from the Fire Nation after finishing firebending," Katara finished. "We got engaged, but the ceremony won't be for a few months."

"Sokka's married," Aang smirked as he motioned his head to the back corner. "He found Suki again a year after the war."

"But that was six years ago," Sokka brushed off. He walked forward and leaned on the bench Aang was sitting on. "Why would they wait so long to try and kill us, assuming they even exist?"

"Do you have any children?" Mai asked the couple. Suki glanced at her husband for assurance and he glanced back before nodding gingerly.

"Our daughter," he said quietly. "But she was only born a couple of months ago… That can't be why they're here, right?"

"I don't mean this the wrong way, but it might be," Zuko muttered to him. From the corner Suki's face began to shrivel in a cocktail of anger and distress.

"No!" she screeched suddenly. "No one's going to kill her! I'm not losing another one! It won't happen!" In what seemed to be a rare display of emotion for the group, Suki quickly covered her quivering mouth with her hand and attempted to hold her face in an angered expression as best as she could, but she could not prevent the tears that forced their way out of the corner of her eyes. Sokka quickly strode over to the crying woman and embraced her tightly.

"I don't understand," Zuko mumbled quietly to Katara. "What happened?"

"They had a child before Awinita," Katara muttered back to him. "But he passed away."

"He was only two. It was the winter and I guess one of us left the window open in his room," Sokka answered as calmly as he could, but there was a strong sound of despair in his voice. "When we woke up the next morning… he was as cold as ice." Sokka stumbled over the last few words and clenched his jaw to contain his own tears, but it still threatened to tip itself over.

"I'm sorry to hear that," Zuko said to them sincerely. "I can't imagine how it must feel to lose a child, especially at such a young age—"

"Wait, Zuko, something doesn't sound right about that story," Mai whispered to the Fire Lord.

"What do you mean?" he frowned.

"It's Sokka, right?" Mai asked the Water Tribe man with a tone that sounded anxious, another emotional tone Zuko had not heard from her.

"What is it?" he said sharply. "You already made Tsuchi feel worse than she should have, and now you want us to feel just as bad?

"No, I have a question," she replied coolly. "You said you left the window opened, right?"

"I don't know, I guess," he growled. "One of us did."

"Okay, here is my question: who opens a window in the middle of winter?" Zuko's eyes shot from his head for she knew what she was implying, as did everyone in the room.

"What are you trying to say?" Suki asked, pulling herself away from her husband and quickly wiped the stray tears from her eye.

"You don't find it suspicious that you would leave a window open in the middle of winter, especially if it's so cold outside?" Mai asked them. As if a sudden surge of energy pulsed through her, Mai began to pace in the empty space provided for her. "How long have you lived here?"

"All my life," Suki responded curtly. "What's your point?"

"You've lived here for your whole life, and I don't know who he is, but you and your sister come from south, right?" Sokka knitted his brows together, suddenly becoming intrigued with what she was saying. "You both would have had the common sense to keep the window closed, or even to bundle him up extra, especially since it's so cold. This wasn't your fault. The Resistance has already been here."

The air in the room was dead. Anyone who tried or wanted to say something was unable to, for everything and anything they could say sounded out of place and ill said. "Are you saying," Suki forced the words from her mouth, "that my son was _murdered_?"

"Listen," Mai explained to the stressed mother, "I may not know you, and I don't complement anyone, but you seem like a smart person, you and your husband, so I know you would know to never open a window during the middle of winter, let alone leave it open at night. And you both have experience in cold weather, so if you did decide to leave the window open you would have bundled him up extra."

"Oh my god," Suki and Sokka both gagged, rushing to the door of their child's room. For surely whoever had done this before was going to come back now.

'-'

The sun was almost set, several seconds away from complete darkness except for the nightlight in the sky. It was ice on the other side of the glass panes, the edges just slightly frosted from the onset of the cold front that was striding past the village. The birds perched on the trees outside began to retire for the evening and the night animals began to rise. The nearby owls began to hunt and the ground animals were scurrying into new hiding spots. The wind blew the aroma of trees and salt water through the minute cracks of the modest cabin at the base of the mountain. In the back of the cabin was a quaint room, dark and silent for the infant with auburn hair sleeping peacefully in her crib. Adorable was demeaning and perfect was insulting to depict the little one who slumbered, hurting no one.

From the darkest corner of the room emerged a shadowy, pale, amethyst figure, stalking her prey, lurking around the edges of the wooden gates that held the child in. She gently put her hand in the crib and settled it next to the newborn's cheek, stroking it tenderly with the spider leg she called a finger. Murmurs came from outside the door and the figure could identify every one of them. Only one was anxious and she knew who it was, but it was not her time yet. Not just yet. She had to wait. Wait for the right moment, for if not, then she could ruin all she had worked so hard to maintain. What she was doing had to be done, whether she did not want to or if she did. The voices began to become much more urgent, and it was not just from the same one.

_It's getting close_, she mentally sighed. _I best get ready_. As carefully as she could, she scooped the child in her arms so as not to disturb her. She had the infant in her arms, still sleeping so peacefully.

"Hello, Awinita," she whispered ever so quietly to the resting baby. "Don't you look like an angel? Let's see if we can make you a real one."

'-'

I posted a wannabe screenshot of this chapter. It's not finished and it's not very good, but I don't plan on fixing it any time soon. As always, I take drawing requests, and as always please leave a review on your way out. Until next time, Signing Off.


	19. In Exchange For

Disclaimer: The following chapter is entirely fictitious. Any similarity to the history of any person living or dead is entirely coincidental and unintentional, except when specifically noted otherwise in the cast and crew credits. All celebrity voices are impersonated and no celebrities have endorsed any aspect of this fic.

Chapter Eighteen: In Exchange For...

'-'

"Listen," Mai explained to the stressed mother, "I may not know you, and I don't complement anyone, but you seem like a smart person, you and your husband, so I know you would know to never open a window during the middle of winter, let alone leave it open at night. And you both have experience in cold weather, so if you did decide to leave the window open you would have bundled him up extra."

"Oh my god," Suki and Sokka both gagged, rushing to the door of their child's room. For surely whoever had done this before was going to come back now. The two panicked parents collided and clumsily grasped for the door knob. However, as quickly as they had made it to the door, the two stopped. It was sharp and demonic, their movements, their hands shot to their sides in the blink of an eyes while their legs backed themselves up in a staccato fashion.

"What the hell is going on?" Sokka breathed sharply in an attempt to move his body by himself, but not even his finger would budge.

"I am so sorry," a devilishly eerie voice came from the shadows of their daughter's room. From those shadows came a short haired woman, piercing violet eyes, paler than any ghost they would ever see. "It's such a shame I have to meet you under these unfortunate circumstances." The woman emerged with not only her hand outstretched with her fingers entwined around a simplistic silver dagger, but with the tiny baby sleeping, cradled in the other.

"Who are you!" both Katara and Aang snarled at the woman, each prepping themselves into a battle stance, but the woman had other plans.

"Oh, my apologies," she smirked, quickly dropping Sokka and Suki from her grasps and snapping the blade precariously to the edge of the baby's neck. "I would like to say that none of you have the upper hand in this fight. You see, I have the ultimate control over all of you. And even if you do end up managing to release yourself from my control, I would imagine you would not even dare to put little Awinita's life in jeopardy." Uninvited, she stalked into the den and continued to smile her creepy smile. Zuko frowned in contemplation. The woman looked familiar but he was unsure of where he had seen her before. She appeared to have noticed. "Prince Zuko," she said mockingly, "or should I save _Fire Lord_ Zuko, you seem abstracted. Is there something you would like to ask me? I swear to you I will not stab you in the hand with a steak knife." He suddenly remembered where he had seen her from. So many years back, only one evening but he remembered it so well now. She had been quiet and had almost blended into the table, but indeed there had been something suspicious about her, her scarred face and her silence.

"You," he breathed. "You were the girl… with Hykiru—"

"Oh, yes, the idiot, intoxicated bastard also known as Hykiru," the inky haired woman laughed. "Oh, but you should know by now that he died years ago, courtesy of myself. It's a funny thing, bending. It seems like once you know how to crush a human skull with your bare hands people suddenly become less intimidating." She dropped the knife from the infant's face to allow a spare finger to gently stroke her cheek. "She is such an angel, Sokka, Suki. I was not anticipating that."

"Let go of my child!" Sokka snarled, stepping forward aggressively. Suki shot her hand out to stop him, for even she would rather surrender than risk her child's life, but he brushed her off. "You will regret stepping into my house—"

"Silly man, what do you expect to do?" she asked nonchalantly while she placed the knife back in its original place. "Are you going to charge at me? Perhaps you think you can fight me off, but in reality, you can't. It's impossible."

Zuko and Mai stood quietly in the corner in the back, merely reacting to the action that was playing out in front of them. She took notice. "Zuko," she said to him in a serious tone, "you have not said more than ten words to me since I have arrived. You haven't even tried to argue with me. What is the matter?"

"I already know what you're capable of," he grunted harshly. "I'm not stupid."

"No," she spat sharply. "That's not it at all. You see, earthbenders have a better understanding of the human body than you think we do. We can sense the people around us through the vibrations, and as for the Resistance, well, you know the story. Your heart, it seems to be beating unusually hard. Did the waterbender Nayeli do something to you?" Mai's eyes drifted to Zuko who was quietly seething. "I can tell. She may have been an idiot but I can tell when you were cut on your arm she managed to drain enough that you would not dare fight at the risk of passing out. Am I right?"

"You're doing a lot of talking, but I see little action," he mumbled under his breath. She rolled her eyes sarcastically and let out a soft chuckle.

"You think I am stupid, don't you?" she asked the unnerved Fire Lord. "You don't think I realize that I am outnumbered? Granted, if I was not holding this child I could kill you all without even trying, but then I wouldn't have leverage." Sokka growled and balled his hand in anger, but again Suki held him back for she knew it was not time to attack. "But I do hope she has a stronger mind than you do," the woman added rudely. "After all, Zuko did try and warn you but who would have guessed that simple mental manipulation would manage to hold back the four greatest minds in the world. I can only imagine how stupid you must feel as of this moment."

"You're the one who killed our son, aren't you?" Suki emitted lowly.

"No," she said honestly. "Despite what Zuko may have said to you about the Resistance being stealthy and coldhearted I like to think of myself as one of the kinder assassins. The one who killed your child was more likely a firebender or a waterbender, seeing as how he froze to death. But me? I am a simple earthbender. I don't kill children. They cannot defend themselves. How could I possibly justify a duel with a child? It's wrong, and it's cruel. I prefer my, how you say, prey, to be able to defend themselves. I guess that's part of the reason why I took on your father and Hiashi, Zuko."

"You killed my father?" he exclaimed just before he could register what else she had said. "Wait, _you_ killed Hiashi!"

"I expected her to fight back, but I was taken aback when she didn't," the woman sneered. "I do have to say, it was quite a disappointment. I can't say I wasn't looking forward to it."

"You bastard!" Zuko barked, allowing his anger to manipulate both his fists and all the candles in the room.

"Oh no you don't, Zuko," she scolded, pressing her dagger closer to baby Awinita's neck.

"Zuko shut it!" Sokka snarled at him. Despite his anger Zuko dropped his hands and allowed the lights to return to their normal size.

"She was nice to you," Zuko said in a garbled tone. "She defended you when no one else did. How could you betray her like that?"

"Betray her? Defended me? How dare you act like you know me!" she scowled. "I bet you don't even know my name. You remember me, you say, but do you really? Besides, she did to him what I could have done. She did nothing special. And like I said before, I took care of him myself."

"That doesn't matter," he snapped back at her. "Even if she didn't do something you could have done yourself you still should have been grateful."

"Grateful?" she cackled. "Grateful for what, exactly?"

"Grateful that she at least tried to help as opposed to—"

"You? Who told her she was stupid for helping me?" she smiled mockingly. Zuko's face fell. "You think I didn't hear you, but I can tell you I am not the sheepish little brat I use to be. And I am certainly not stupid anymore."

"I find that hard to believe."

"Really? Is that why no one bothered to question why their friend Tsuchi has been missing for almost twenty minutes?"

"Where is she?" Katara demanded from the woman, but she shook her head in lieu of laughter.

"Tied up to a tree somewhere, possibly dead" she answered quickly. "Not quite sure where, but I would give it a while. Carbon fiber shackles aren't quite easy to bend off."

"You tied her to a tree?" Aang growled.

"What, would you have liked me to tie her up from her neck from the tree boughs?" she asked him earnestly. "You must forgive me, I am not a barbarian. I do not lynch people in such a manner. By the way, Suki, I would not do that if I was you." Inches away from the boomerang on Sokka's belt, Suki's hand unnaturally flung itself away from her husband. "I know you would never be stupid enough to put your child in danger like that."

"You were stupid enough to let Katara slip out to find Tsuchi," Suki derided. Katara had indeed managed to slip out the front door quietly, everyone had seen her. But the woman did not seem to notice.

"Don't call me stupid," she snarled viciously, pressing the knife once again dangerously deeper into the infant's skin. "Or you will regret it."

"You come here to kill my child and all you have done is torture me with threats! It only makes sense that I begin to wonder if you even have the skills to do so." Suki finished her derision and no sooner after she had said it was she falling to the floor quickly without consciousness.

"Suki!" Sokka gasped. He quickly caught the limp woman before she had a chance to hit the floor and hoisted her up enough to set her on the bench.

"Well, what do you know," the woman giggled. "I think I do have the skills to do so."

"What did you do to my wife?" Sokka ordered the woman to tell him.

"Relax," she understated, "she's only unconscious. Electrolytes in your body do a funny thing with the heart. Isn't chemistry just intriguing?"

"She raised a point; you've done nothing but talk!" Zuko argued. "But I guess that's just what I would expect from a filthy lowlife such as yourself. Playing mind games is what you thrive on, so your pathetic torture club was just an apt choice—"

"Choice?" she laughed out maniacally. "You think I would _choose_ this life? Do you think I would leave a life of freedom for slavery? Do you think I would leave behind hopefully two parents that would have loved me for being raised with several other hundred children that aren't your siblings, just being raised as if we were livestock? Or maybe a house close to friends where I could grow up normally instead of being drilled for fourteen hours a day, seven days a week, just constant bending exercises until you can't feel your arms any more from the beatings you get for doing it wrong. Or instead of play sparring I can get my knees reset because they were pulled out of their sockets during practice? Or how about exchanging my green eyes for five weeks of nothing but migraines, nausea, and muscles spasms after being injected with god knows what, watching my eyes go from its normal color to this ghastly purple color, watching my skin go from dark to blotchy before finally getting pale, or watching the hair that took me twelve years to grow just start falling out! Yes! I can see why it's such a fucking glamorous lifestyle! But no, it doesn't matter. There is nothing I can do. I have to live with it or risk death, and that is not something I wish to suffer through. The only way I can survive is if the Resistance falls, and there is no way that will happen any time soon. Everyone is united, everyone is on the same plane…"

And finally Zuko understood what Gingitsune meant.

One cannot fight fire with fire…

But instead they must fight fire…

With water…

"Not everyone is," he interrupted. The woman knitted her brows together, both confused and insulted that he would interrupt her. "You're tricks are amateur at best."

"Excuse me?" she cracked in bewilderment.

"Zuko, what are you doing?" Mai muttered to him, but he ignored her and the glowering looks from both Sokka and Aang.

"You heard me," he said with no sign of faltering or fear. "Your little group sent a waterbender and an earthbender to kill Mai and I both, but neither one of them succeeded. And I've met an airbender from the Resistance, and I have to say, I'm not impressed."

"Airbender—" Aang began to say, but there was no time to explain to Aang what he meant.

"You can barely do anything," Zuko continued to deride, the woman's face falling deeper and deeper into her anger. "Fire probably has much more capability than everyone else."

"That's not true—" she started, but he trampled her words.

"My sister, before she was thrown in jail, could bend lightning. Energy. I wonder if the firebenders are the only ones who can actually control a person's mind by simply sparking the brain with a pulse of electricity. Is that why you had to invent that pseudo way of mind control? Because all the other elements are too weak to manage it?"

"Zuko—" Aang once again started, but again, no one paid attention.

"Or maybe that's why the Fire Nation managed to almost singlehandedly take over the world," he added just for garnish.

"And is that why in one fell swoop the Avatar managed to crush you all? After all, if I want to douse a fire all I have to do is throw dirt on it!" she quickly rebutted, but it seemed not even she was expecting those words to slip. "Perhaps you aren't as stupid as your people present themselves to be."

"Give me my daughter back," Sokka finally interrupted. "This is getting ridiculous. Your empty threats have gone on long enough—"

"Empty? Who said they were empty?" she chuckled again so casually. Without even hesitating, she pushed the blade into the baby's cheek and began to slide it quickly to the juncture of where her neck and head meet.

"AANG!" Sokka hollered at his friend. Sokka was quick to react. He charged at her, his own knife drawn and no concern for his own safety. He attempted to stab her but unfortunately she was just quicker than him, allowing him to stab the wall behind her. She was much more dexterous, moving her silver blade from the crying infant's face directly into Sokka's arm. Unable to properly grab his daughter himself, he cried out to Aang, "CATCH HER!" As gracefully as he could and ignoring his pain he pushed the woman backwards and managed to pry the infant from her arm, managing to throw his daughter in Aang's direction. Aang screamed in surprise at what he was expected to do, but just in time he bended a puff of air just long enough to grab the floating baby. Other than a simple flesh wound, baby Awinita was fine.

Sokka, however, was not as lucky as her. The woman, her hands went up, and through no will of his own, Sokka right arm was suddenly reaching for his knife that he had implanted into the wall. The actions were so quick he was unsure of what had come first. It was either the motion of his opposite arm being pulled from his socket, the burning shattering sensation running down it, or more significantly the sickening feeling of his own knife tearing into the juncture where his arm attached itself to his body, simply leaving the limb dangling barely by a small segment. Crying out in a bloodcurdling scream Sokka fell to the floor writhing in pain from his arm, which was now almost nonexistent.

He ignored his physician's request again. Zuko jumped onto the small table to push himself over the couch, delivering several kicks of conflagration towards the amethyst woman. Right behind him was Mai with skillfully aimed blades sent flying towards the same target. Though Zuko managed to grab her wrist with a hand engulfed, she replied the same way, except using him as a human shield against Mai's flying spears. She tossed Zuko aside and sprung to the door as her only means of escaping. Mai chased her out as did Zuko, despite having several arrows in his leg and stilettos in his arms and shoulder. He only managed to make it to the door frame when the dizziness set in. But the woman did not seem to mind.

"By the way, Zuko," she called out to him as she raised dust and dirt from the ground into a spiral, "my name is Kurogane, since you forgot. But nevertheless, I hope you realize what you have done." And in a split second she was gone. Which Zuko could not have been happier since he held onto his consciousness for as long as he could.

'-'

For those who are wondering, "Dude, there is no way Zuko would pass out, he was only active for like ten seconds!11one 1won!" I'm mostly basing the feeling on when I donated blood. I'm a lightweight and there's a reason why you have to be over 110 pounds. They take a pint of blood, roughly one pound, and I was underweight that day (I was stress, too, and had lost five pounds that week, but that's personal and besides the point). NEHO, I was exactly 110 so when all the blood was gone, I was 109. I looked up that our body's 7 percent blood and I did the math, which means that I would have had about 7.7 pints of blood in me. So they too one, leaving me with 6.7 pints, so 6.7 over 7.7 is about 0.8701 (rounding it), and that's about 12 percent blood loss. That's close to the border of level two hemorrhaging, which is bad (15 percent is the next level over). So going back to my main point, I had guard practice that day and the instructor told me (and everyone who donated blood that day) that we knew we had practice, so whatever sicknesses we were feeling we needed to get over it. So I went about guard practice, sucking it up (and for those who don't know what colorguard is, it's like dance, only with equipments stuff like flags, rifles, and sabres.) Two of four hours of warm ups, across the floors, running, and just practice I managed to get through before throwing up on the mat. Almost passed out twice. Barely could move. Now imagine if I had lost more blood? Zuko lost more blood than I did, so that is why that is that… though I doubt you really cared T-T. Oh, and I drew a picture of now amputee Sokka with baby Awinita, but that won't be posted until I am officially done with it. As always, please leave a review and I am also open for drawing suggestions. Until next time, Signing Off!


	20. House of Cards

Disclaimer: The following chapter is entirely fictitious. Any similarity to the history of any person living or dead is entirely coincidental and unintentional, except when specifically noted otherwise in the cast and crew credits. All celebrity voices are impersonated and no celebrities have endorsed any aspect of this fic.

Chapter Nineteen: House of Cards

'-'

"You got lucky, Sokka. I wish I could have gotten to this sooner, but it looks like you're going to be okay."

"So… how about my arm? With some earthbending mending and a little water action—"

"No, Sokka. I'm really sorry, but before she cut it off, she completely disintegrated the bone inside. I mean, even if I managed to fix it I can't fix it perfectly, meaning the bones might be smaller and I just might mess it up… think about it like reassembling a vase that's been shattered into thousands of pieces. I might bend something into a place it shouldn't. I'm sorry, but I can't save it." Tsuchi pulled the rubber glove off each hand and tossed them into the bowl of warm water on the table next to her. "Take it like it is, Sokka," she sighed heavily while digging through one of the various bags she had brought with her. "Firstly, you're alive. Secondly, you're lucky I managed to get into med school at all! Thirdly, even though losing your arm is bad, at least she pulled on the arm before she completely cut it. The veins stretched enough they closed themselves, so you don't have as much bleeding as there should be."

"Yes, I should be forever grateful that she ripped my arm off," Sokka grumbled angrily under his breath.

"Hey, after Katara heals most of it there's enough skin that I can stitch this sucker up," she smirked. She finally found what she was looking for which appeared to be a plastic baggy with string and a needle in it and a thick stick, flat on both ends but one end with a glass circle. She flicked the button on the side of it and from the glass end flashed light on and off every time she hit it. "When she's done with Zuko she can wash you up. Suki, may you please just apply pressure? Just mildly." Suki, who had woken up only minutes after Kurogane had left, did not need to be told twice. She quickly took the position Tsuchi's hands had on the gauze and did as she was instructed. "If… you want," Tsuchi continued while she tore open the bag with the string, "I can get started with stitching up Awinita if you like."

"How is she?" he quickly asked upon mention of his daughter's name, nearly causing him to fall off the bench he was reclined on.

"Sokka, I told you, she's fine!" Tsuchi scolded the novice amputee. "She's going to be fine. That lady barely nicked her. It's nothing a few stitches can't take care of."

"I swear if anything—"

"God! Can you trust me? Geeze, you're just as bad as the people back home. Aang, bring her over." Aang had been in the corner with the bandaged up child while Suki was tending to her husband for the time being. Unnatural for Aang be quiet, he had not said a single word since the assassin had left. It concerned all of them. Tsuchi took the baby from his arms and Aang retracted back into the corner. "Are you okay?" she asked him but it garnered no response. She rolled her eyes when she still received no response and turned back to Sokka and asked him, "Do you think you can hold the bandages? I need Suki to hold her."

"It isn't going to hurt her, is it?" Suki frown while taking the child from Tsuchi.

"I could give her some local anesthetic," she shrugged hesitantly. "But let's face it, if her face goes numb she's going to be crying anyways. And with all the stuff that can happen if I do give it to her… Well, it's probably better for her to just have a few minutes of discomfort." Suki was concerned but she nodded reluctantly. Baby Awinita had finally stopped crying and almost did not seem to notice the laceration on her face anymore, but Tsuchi already explained it had to be done, especially if they wanted it to heal properly. "How's Zuko coming along, Katara?" the girl asked while exchanging her light stick for a headband with a parabolic reflector on it.

"I'm fine," the bitter Fire Lord mumbled. And he was. While Sokka had lost an arm, Zuko managed to slink away with only several puncture wounds in the shoulder, arm, and lower thigh. Still, he was mortified he had passed out in front of what were essentially strangers, and the fact that one of those strangers felt the need to take care of him. "I hope you people believe me now about the severity of what's going on. You saw how she controlled you. She didn't even need to touch you."

"Okay, I get it," Sokka snapped. "I think watching myself cut my own arm off is enough evidence to take this thing seriously."

"It's disgusting," Katara grumbled when she drew the water away from Zuko's shoulder to place it in the bowl next to her. "How can someone just reach into another person's body like that and control them? It's just so… ugh! It's wrong." Katara's anger was disrupted by Awinita's crying since Tsuchi had begun stitching up the baby's face. Sokka grimaced, clearly in pain but it was undetermined if it was from his arm, the wailing, or if it was more emotional.

"The important thing is that we're all alive, and almost unscathed," Tsuchi sighed over the little girl's cries. She grabbed a pair of scissors from the black bag she kept digging though and snipped the string from Awinita's face. "Guess what, buppas?" she said to the infant in a lighthearted voice. "We're done! We're all done! You were such a good girl!" Tears were still continuing to stream down her face but Awinita stopped crying to look at Tsuchi in confusion. "Put some aloe or prickled pear cactus on it twice a day until it starts going away, it should soften the scarring. Suki, you've done first aid as a Kyoshi, right? You can use your best judgment when to remove the stitches. A few healing sessions with Katara and the pear cactus and it should be ready in a week, week and a half, two at the most." Suki squeezed the infant and thank Tsuchi with a nod before taking the spare spot next to Sokka's feet. "Katara, if you're finished with Zuko over there can you clean Sokka out so I can suture him?" Katara heaved histrionically and headed over to her brother, still angry, but not because she did not want to help but that she had to in the first place. Her brother should not have had to lose his arm.

"How's your stomach?" she asked Tsuchi who was again digging into her bag, searching for more string.

"It was just a flesh wound, calm yourself," the girl chuckled. "Although my book would beg to differ." She motioned her head to the fairly large black book on the table with a gargantuan hole though the center with just a tiny bit of dried blood on the gold cross that was on the cover. "It sucks! I just made it into part two! Damn it, now I have to get a new one." There was silence for a while. No one wanted to say anything and anything to settle the mood would have been forced. But they all knew what had to be asked.

"So what are we going to do?" Suki finally spoke softly. "How do you fight an enemy that can break you without touching you?"

"You can't," Sokka grunted while his sister was healing what she could. "I'm wondering if even with the Avatar if we'd be able to do anything. You saw how she took us all on. She narrowed us down without even trying. And she still managed to take three of us on at once."

"But that was when she was manipulating us," Suki argued. "We already know what's going on, so we'd be able to know her tricks. They wouldn't use it again, would they?"

"Who knows," her husband replied. "They already did this to us once, and they almost did it again. And who knows how many times it happened to Zuko, it could happen again. Frankly, I don't know what we can do."

"We can't do anything," Zuko answered for them. Those who were not doing anything shot their heads in Zuko's direction in an almost abhorrence that he would suggest that it was hopeless.

"Zuko, no offense, but we don't need your negativity," Katara snapped at the Fire Lord.

"But he's right!" Sokka agreed with the person before Katara. "We have to face that we can't do anything. The best thing we can do is to try and stay on guard and make sure they don't sneak up on us."

"For the rest of our lives? Sounds like a _major_ plot hole, Sokka," Tsuchi uttered in sarcasm.

"Would you stop interrupting me?" Zuko barked at them. "The last time you did that to me you lost out on precious time, which by the way, could have saved your kid from a lifetime of disfigurement!"

"Who the hell are you to be speaking of disfigurement?" Sokka screamed, jumping to his feet and nearly losing what little balance he had.

"Sokka, get back on the couch," Katara ordered him and managed to push her brother back on the bench with little effort.

"Zuko has a point," Tsuchi said softly. "We kept interrupting him. Had we just listened to him we might have been able to save you guys from this."

"Despite what _he _said," Zuko said spitefully with emphasis on Sokka, "I know exactly how the stigma of disfigurement is, and had you listened to me you could have avoided this. Listen to me now. There is a way to stop them, but we personally can't do anything."

"We could take their bending away," a little voice mumbled from the corner. It took them a while to realize who it came from but the only other person it could have been was Aang. He had not lifted his head to speak but it was certainly from him.

"Aang, what do you mean?" Katara asked concernedly.

"You saw what she did," the young monk responded. "I saw what she did. She made Suki pass out with no effort. She bended you two like puppets. She used Zuko as a human shield without trouble. Those knives that stabbed him were bended _away_ from herself and into him. She manipulated Sokka and made him cut his own arm off. You heard what she said, there are waterbenders who can drain your blood with just a simple nick, firebenders that can make you so cold you freeze… and airbenders… that are even still alive… I can't imagine what they can do. They could kill us. They're worse than what I've had to deal with. These people cannot be trusted with their bending. Even if we could, somehow, _possibly_, come close to… being… able to… kill them, I would never do it. Still, these people are much too strong. The easiest thing to do would be to take their bending away. It's the only thing I can do."

"Aang, you can't be serious?" the concerned waterbender gasped.

"Aang raised a point, Katara," the woman's brother concurred.

"No, he doesn't," Katara snapped. "Aang, don't you remember how you were after you took the Fire Lord's bending away?"

"I was fine," Aang replied curtly.

"No, you weren't. You slept for two days after. We tried to wake you up but you wouldn't get up. And even after that you were too weak to do much else! This isn't just one person we're talking about, this is a lot."

"So what am I supposed to do? Just let them continue to kill innocent people? Should we stay on our guard for the rest of our lives?"

"Hey, remember how we said we were going to listen to Zuko from now on lest we get our limbs cut off by our own hands?" the sarcastic lady doctor asked the group. "I think we should listen to him now."

"Thank you," Zuko mumbled, though he was unsure if he should. "We don't have to take anyone's bending away. We just need them to destroy themselves."

"And how do you expect that to happen?" Suki queried roughly.

"Yeah, they aren't exactly going to fall anytime soon." Tsuchi scooted towards Sokka and began to sew his shoulder.

"It doesn't matter," he said adamantly. "They've all been brainwashed. We don't need all of them to fall, just one. They're all so united with each other, they don't think any one element is stronger than the other, not because it's true, but because they've instilled it in them."

"Wait a minute, I think I get what you're talking about," Tsuchi muttered slowly. "It's like a house of cards. Every card plays its part, no question. But the moment someone removes a card or even blows on it…"

"The whole thing comes crashing down," Katara finished. "So you're saying they need to take care of themselves?"

"What, that it will collapse on its own?" the amputee asked. "How would we go about doing that?"

"We already have. The only way to defeat the Resistance is with the Resistance." They were fixed on Zuko in anticipation, unsure of what he was getting at, at least those who did not follow. The Resistance was ready to fall, he implied, but how was what most of them did not understand. In the brief stiffness of the room Sokka's arm suddenly swung across his chest and halted seconds before it hit the opposite side of his ribcage, his hands arranged into a fist as if grabbing the air.

"Sokka, what's wrong?" Suki huffed in bewilderment, fearful that the sudden movement meant the horrible woman was back. Sokka stared blankly where his hand was and almost seemed embarrassed.

"Nothing," his voice cracked in disappointment and despair, still frozen in the empty space next to him. "My arm… was just itchy."

'-'

BTW, just so you know, Tsuchi isn't all preachy with the Bible, and neither am I. I'm a Christian, yes, I won't force my beliefs on you, but let's face it, everyone and their mother in the 1950s was a religious freak. Tsuchi just has to go with the flow. And she doesn't quite get religion, she's reading the Bible the same was you would read this fanfiction. Or Harry Potter. And so you know I'm serious, she's a MarSus shipper (Mary Magdalene x Jesus). Blasphemous? Absolutely, but Tsuchi's an idiot when it comes to other people.

Updates are going to be slow again. I just started school last week and my days are super erratic. We're talking Monday, Thursday, Friday, and Saturday. As you can see, random. And I know a lot of you will be starting school as well (or already have), which means **absolutely** no reviews (which makes me sad on the inside T-T) but it's okay, I forgive you. For now… As always please at least try and leave a review, I have a deviant art page, and any suggestions or ideas for drawings are always nice. Until next time, Signing Off.


	21. And Ju Came Tumbling After

Disclaimer: The following chapter is entirely fictitious. Any similarity to the history of any person living or dead is entirely coincidental and unintentional, except when specifically noted otherwise in the cast and crew credits. All celebrity voices are impersonated and no celebrities have endorsed any aspect of this fic.

Chapter Twenty: And Ju Came Tumbling After

'-'

He already did what he needed to do, but Zuko was still there hours after being attacked. He was sure someone was going to return to finish them off but no one did. He was exhausted and he could tell Mai was, too, sitting in the chair next to him unaware she was drifting off every five minutes. He wanted to tell her to go back to the ship but he knew it was probably better to stay in the house in case there was someone who was waiting for them. He wanted to stand, but his head was much too heavy to lift and every time he did stand he was always dizzy, or throwing up. Four of five of them were in the small kitchen talking in hushed voices so as not to disturb the ones sleeping in the sitting room. Sokka was sleeping on the couch with baby Awinita snuggly on his chest and following her father's example. Within an hour after Tsuchi had bandaged him up Sokka had passed out four times, fell over six times, threw up twice, dropped thing because he forgot his left hand was missing seven times, and was now currently running a fever while simultaneously being clammy. His friends had just managed to convince him to sleep half an hour ago and since then he was all but dead. They were trying to keep as quiet as they could, but Zuko was able to strain his ears just enough to hear them.

"…I mean I get that he's here to help, but how do we know he didn't just lead them to us?" he could hear one of the woman saying.

"I saw the way that girl talked to him, she wouldn't have thrown him down the river like that," the only man in the kitchen, Aang, mumbled. "She acknowledged that she knew him but she was so rude and disrespectful. Why would she do that?"

"It's not like it hasn't happened before, Aang," another one of the women replied. "You know how many times people lied to us just to cover their story. Still, I agree with you. Zuko's here to help us. Why else would he risk himself to help Sokka?"

"Monetary gain?" one of the woman suggested. "Let's face it, if someone offered me a huuuuge settlement I'd give you up too." Surely that one was Tsuchi.

"Tsuchi, this is serious," the second woman scolded her. "What are we going to do to protect ourselves?"

"I already said—"

"Aang, you're not going to take their bending away. There's too many of them and you'll end up killing yourself," what he assumed was Katara said.

"Then what do you suppose we do?" the other voice, Suki presumably, asked.

"There's very little we can do," Katara's voice sighed. "We can't fight them. There was one of her and she managed to keep all of us at bay. I can't imagine facing thousands of people just like her. Maybe even stronger."

"Ionno," Tsuchi said pensively. "Maybe it's just me but I don't think these people are as powerful as they seem to be."

"She made me pass out without touching me, she disintegrated my husband's arm, you saw the arm yourself! Even you said it was beyond repair!" Suki cracked.

"Exactly," Tsuchi confirmed. "Without touching any of you, did you see how much damage she did? When I was alone I swear I didn't even know I was attacked. Okay, let me start from the beginning so you don't look at me like that. See, I was in the woods and I hear this person calling for help and I go to look but it turns out to be this black haired girl—"

"Short hair? Purple shirt with one strap?"

"With the black pants and boots? Yeah, that was her. She attacked here too?"

"Yes…" Katara paused for a moment before continuing, "She said she was the one who killed your sister. She said she had killed you, too."

"I see," Tsuchi mumbled. She took a deep breath as if to calm herself before continuing her story. "Well, anyways, she grabbed me and cuffed me to the tree and she was saying all this nonsense about how no one was going to doubt her, how she was going to show them. I really didn't know what to say. After she was done ranting she stabbed me in the gut. Lucky for me I brought my messenger bag with me that had my book in it. But…"

"But nothing, she tried to kill you and—"

"Aang, that's the thing," Tsuchi interrupted. "She stabbed my book and it went all the way though enough to get me good in the stomach, but wouldn't you know where you were stabbing? Like, wouldn't you be able to tell if what you're stabbing isn't flesh?" There was silence at the table and Zuko could only imagine the looks on their face if he were to tell them he knew exactly what she meant. "I've handled a scalpel before and I know from firsthand what it feels like to cut into flesh and I'm telling you, a book and the abdomen feel like two different things. And see, she stabbed me way to the side, Katara, you saw it. Come on, she got me in a spot where even if it did go through I'd still be alive to tell you. I'm thinking these people aren't as good as you're all thinking they are. Well, if they are then they aren't as smart as we think."

"Okay, then what are we going to do?" Katara asked. The table fell silent again. He could tell they were contemplating as best as they could but the silence implied they did not know what to think.

"Well we can go make sure what Zuko said is actually going though," Tsuchi suggested.

"Okay and what about Sokka?" Katara quickly squelched. "We can't leave him behind without anyone to help him. For god sakes he only has one arm and he's a mess!"

"In that case Suki and I should stay behind," Tsuchi answered.

"No, I want to go and stop this," Suki corrected her. "What she did to my family—"

"Will be nothing compared to what she'll do to you if you do go," Tsuchi intervened. "Look, I know you're a good fighter and up against any other bender in the world you can probably beat the shit out of them better than another bender, but this isn't the case. Suki, you realize they can kill us without touching us. Without any form of bending I doubt you stand a chance. I'm sorry but that's the truth."

"Then why did you say you would stay?" Aang asked.

"For the same reason," the woman responded. "These two need at least one bender and I can kind of count for two. Besides, I'm a doctor and Sokka really needs me. Katara could probably stay but I think you'd be better off actually fighting. You're stronger than I am."

"Then that means the girl Zuko brought would have to stay because she's not a bender either," Katara added. Zuko shifted his eyes to Mai who had finally lost her battle with fatigue and was now secretly sleeping in her arm.

"I didn't get to see her fight for very long but she can actually be a danger to us," Aang contributed. "She fights with knives and if all the earthbenders can bend metal then she's just supplying them with weapons."

"Then that only leaves you with three people," Suki argued. "That's not enough people. You need to go, Tsuchi. If it's benders you need to concern yourself with then four is better than three."

"Either way we're eff-ed in the A," Tsuchi sighed with a mixture of yawning. "We can't just leave you all behind. And Sokka needs medical attention. I thought he was fine but he's not handling it well, despite his lying."

"I can take care of Sokka."

"I'm not saying you can't, but I am saying that I have better equipment than you guys. Well, except Katara, but you get my point. I think you fail to realize that people in the old days use to die because of infection and poor treatment. He has a compression band, he's all sutured up, it will heal properly, and while I'm gone Katara will keep infections at bay, but what will happen if you're tending to his fever and then all of a sudden you guys are attacked again?"

"I don't know—"

"Exactly. No matter what we do we're screwed. We all go, we all die, only the benders go, we're outnumbered. There's no dealing with it."

"Well Zuko said he brought his ship," Aang mentioned. "He said he brought some of his guards, and they're all benders. Maybe he'd be willing to have some of them help us."

"Which would require us having to tell them what to look out for, which means more people involved, which means more people they're going to want to kill," Tsuchi shredded. "Granted, it's a good idea, but I'm just not sure if it will work."

"I still think I should—"

"Aang, will you stop it? We can think of another way around this."

"No, you won't. None of you can think of a way around it. The only real plan there is might not even work and for all we know that person wasn't even phased by what Zuko said."

'-'

She had palpitations. Rushing through her was adrenalin and she was unsure what to do with herself. So many thoughts passed through her, more than all of them she had to stifle lest she be known. It was unnerving, it was bewildering.

Frankly it was exhilarating.

Still, she did not know what to do.

Or if anyone knew already.

No more than two days ago she was in the arctic and now she was deep beneath the earth, back home and in the most dangerous place she could be. No one had yet approached her. She assumed no one knew quite yet of her failure, which was strange since news of anything spread so quickly, especially within the busybody group of assassins who loved to brag of their success, or mock others of their fails.

"Kurogane!" she heard the familiar waterbender's voice from the tables near the cafeteria. Darja was not alone and despite each one looking as identical as the other, she knew there were all types of benders there. Cautiously but nonchalantly, Kurogane walked towards the table and pulled up a chair to join them. "I was just telling them how the High Master gave you all of the south _and_ the Fire Lord again! You just get back?"

"It was unsuccessful," she sighed truthfully.

"Unsuccessful?" one of the men sitting with them, a firebender, chuckled at her expense. "It's Zuko. He's not exactly the best firebender in the world."

"But he did get better over the years," Kurogane admitted. "He managed to distinguish his bending away from his anger."

"That doesn't mean anything," an airbender woman interrupted. "He's still inferior compared to us! And you're supposed to be the best out of all the assassins!"

"There were more than five of them. There was no chance for me to get them all, and besides, they had the Avatar. The last thing I needed was to kill all his friends and have him go into the Avatar state. It wouldn't have worked that way."

"Oh, please!" Darja scoffed. "That's bullshit and you know it! I've seen you take on ten benders at a time! Three of those people didn't bend at all! One couldn't even fight! Did you at least get the baby?"

"Didn't get a chance. Like I said, Zuko knows too much about us and he warned them before I got a chance."

"It only takes like two seconds to gut them," another man, an earthbender like her, demeaned. "Trust me! I'm a pro at it."

"Yes, but I would at least try to have some dignity when I assassinate people," Kurogane mumbled. "Unlike some barbarians."

"They're the barbarians," said Darja snobbishly. "Those trivial people have no idea what they're doing. Such sinners."

"Haha, it looks like the almighty assassin Kurogane has finally met her match!" the firebender spoke with spite and condescendence.

She grinded her teeth. How rude of someone to speak so rudely of her when they did not even know. "It's just Zuko," she muttered through her fingers, chewing on a hinge of excess protein hanging from the edge of her finger. "There's nothing those damn firebenders can do to me. All I have to do is throw dirt on then, that ought to extinguish them." She continued to chew on her cuticle and ignored the wide eyes staring back at her. She knew exactly what she said.

"Okay," the firebender tried to speak calmly. "I guess that is true. He is nothing compared to us, so I can see why—"

"What's there to guess?" she continued again, this time with a dash of annoyance. "He's a firebender. You should know how they are. Enough said."

"No, not enough said," the firebender growled. Everyone at their table was horrified at the words spilling from Kurogane's mouth. Never had anyone spoke such awful things about another bender, and from the mouth of someone so prestigious. It was heresy. "There is a _huge_ difference between inferior firebenders and our kind."

"Not much, if you're going to get all up in a huff as to what I said," Kurogane berated. "It's like you people enjoy being mad. No wonder the Fire Nation fell so quickly. Winning the war would actually make them happy."

"What the hell are you talking about?" the man gasped in horror. "The Fire Nation fell with a mixture of us and the Avatar and those other people whom he gathered!"

"Yeah, but even with the power of the meteor, how did a seemingly strong nation fall with it? They had the world in their grasps for a hundred years and the one time they have the most power, isn't it a little suspicious they fell so quickly? I think so."

"How rude!" the airbender woman scolded the earthbender. "You know as well as all of us that all the elements are equal in strength! You know the Fire Nation was weak—"

"Oh shut up, Luli, don't even get me started on weak, see, there's a reason your people were killed first!" The airbender was left with her with a Se Tu's mouth.

"Kurogane, what is the matter with you?" Darja growled at her friend. "What the hell is all this with your inferiority shit? That's not Resistance appropriate!"

"Now hold on a second, the Air Nomads are a strong people!" the woman defended herself. "They died because they were ambushed and simply refused to respond."

"Sure they did," Kurogane said humorously. "Next time we need to give the infidels a bad hair day I'll make sure they send for you.

"Oh hell no! You think this is funny?" she barked at the earthbender man sitting next to her.

"A little bit," the man said honestly. "Oh, relax, Luli, she's just messing."

"Just messing?" she said with causticity. "Okay, Kohaku, does that mean I'm just messing when I say all you earthbenders are inferior to the rest of us?"

"Well now I know you're joking," he responded.

"Oh, so it's okay for me to say that I could just blow dirt away. Or how about how water can always turn you dirt munchers into mud? Or how about your people's indecency to breed like bunnies with the rest of the countries, you fucking sex addicts."

"Hey, I take offense to that!" Darja intervened.

"Well that's because there's a lot of mudbloods out there, isn't it?" the woman sneered.

"Yeah, all the Fire Nation crossbreeds are dead!" the firebender joined. "All that's left are your unwanted muck-ers."

"Actually, there's a few that are still alive," Kurogane slipped. "I contribute that to the earthbender in them. If they can hold their own against the Fire Nation for a hundred years I think they can handle me. But I guess I have to be careful."

"Fuck that! It's the Fire Nation in them!" the firebender yelled. "They managed to keep your dirt munching ass away—"

"You want to say that to my face, Fan?" the male earthbender holler so loud that now everyone was staring.

"You FUCKING dirt munching ASS!" the firebender said so slowly yet so loudly.

"Oh hell no, that's the line! Fuck that! I'll kick your fucking _firecracker_ ass!" The earthbender jumped to his feet and kicked the table over into Darja and Kurogane.

"Kohaku, Fan, stop it!" Darja hushed them. She pushed the table away from herself and into the woman who started the fight. "You two are being ridiculous!"

"Shut your mouth, wetback!" snapped the firebender.

"Fan!" the airbender cried.

"You, too, you airheaded pikey bitch. Stay out of it!" The men began to shove each other, the woman attempting to separate them but only to get shoved herself.

"You see what you did?" Darja ridiculed Kurogane. "Do something about this!"

"No, I need to go," she replied blankly. She turned to walk away, but before she did she whispered into Darja's ear, "I need to speak with High Master Keme. You know, before things escalade too much."

'-'

Okay, so today marks the ninth year anniversary of the day some very irate retard terrorists crashed themselves into the World Trade Center and the Pentagon. I remember how selfish I was when it happened. They had all this news coverage on it and they took Sailor Moon off the air for the day and I was mad because of it (the Sailor Moon thing.) But now as I've gotten older I know it was bad. And I wonder about the people who could have died but didn't. Like Seth MacFarlane, creator of _Family Guy_ and _American Dad!_ He was supposed to be on the airplane that crashed into the North Tower, but he was hung over and had the wrong time. And it's times like these I get _The Bride of San Luis Rey_ flashbacks and wonder if there was a reason he wasn't on that flight. I know he's an atheist, but I like to wonder if it was maybe God or the Devil who saved him. In my mind I like to think it was God. Maybe God thinks _Family Guy_ is funny too! I like to think that so I don't feel bad watching it. And then maybe the Christians who hate it won't be all in a huff about it.

NEHO, as always leave a message por favor, I miss them. Don't make me sad : ( . Also I have a deviant art page, and I'm always looking for suggestions. And as my poetry class gains steam I'll probably be posting poems up too. Until next time, Signing Off!


	22. Back to the Place

Disclaimer: The following chapter is entirely fictitious. Any similarity to the history of any person living or dead is entirely coincidental and unintentional, except when specifically noted otherwise in the cast and crew credits. All celebrity voices are impersonated and no celebrities have endorsed any aspect of this fic.

Author's note: so forgive me, those who have actually been reading, for taking so long in updating the story. So much has gone on in the past… I forget when I last updated, but there was a lot of school, a lot of homework, many side projects, a lot of drama, and so forth. But at some point you need to move on with your life and put the past in the past and just accept yourself for who you are, because you're going to be spending the rest of your life with you. Sometimes it takes a proverbial shotgun to the face in order to see things the way they should be, but alas I have learned. Took me forever, but I have learned. But now I'm done with my AA in English and I just got accepted to La Verne, and I have a temp babysitting job. And like I said before, the only person you need to please is yourself, and that's exactly what I'm doing. NEHO, I forgot the point I was making. Well, at any rate, I've been doing some random writing because I took a Creative Writing class and am continuing to work on my side project which officially has a name. Still working out the kinks but I've managed to learn to improve on craft. So many projects I want to do, so much procrastination. Though don't expect the story to get any better. Also, insert DeviantArt promoting here. Still doing requests... Anyways, on with the fic!

Chapter Twenty-One: Back to the Place

'-'

"I love you, Sokka," Suki muttered into her husband's chest as she hugged him so tight. The boat at the pier waited for her and Awinita to board. "I know we can't talk until they get back, but know we'll miss you."

"I'm going to miss you, too," Sokka said into her hair and kissed her for as long as he could before placing a peck on his daughter's forehead, who grabbed her father's nose to prevent him from going.

"Sokka, we're waiting for you." In the distance stood Mai, arms across her chest and waiting by the gargantuan Fire Nation vessel wading in the water.

A sigh breaking from his lungs, Sokka kissed his wife once more before following the sound of the voice calling him.

Zuko stood with Aang, Katara, and Tsuchi, who were speaking in hushed voices, figuring out where they were supposed to be going. The group kept him out of the tight bubble they had, but whatever they were speaking about Zuko was sure was not pleasant. Through their whispers shot aggressive tones and hissing, most from Katara who was snapping at both Aang and Tsuchi for whatever reason. Rolling his eyes, Zuko strode to Mai who stood by herself watching Sokka fumble with his things before two of the servants from the ship decided to help.

"We're getting ready to leave," he said in his normal quiet voice. "Do you think you'll be okay alone?"

"Only if you're going to force me." Mai picked at a loose thread on her robe and flicked at it when it did not detach. "I'm not a child. I don't need you to protect me."

"You saw what happened on the ship, and those were amateurs. You haven't experienced what I have—"

"And you assume you're so much better? I can protect myself, Zuko, I don't need a babysitter—"

"I'm not saying you do," he said, frustrated. He paused for a moment to take a breath and bit the inside of his cheek. "You're going to need as much help as you can get and you won't get any of that if you're just with me and those three." Zuko scratched the back of his neck and picked a scab his fingers found. "I think you'll be better off back at home. Hopefully you'll be safe out at sea."

"I'm not going to have privacy, am I?"

Zuko frowned his usual frown and shook his head. "Not now you can't. If anything, you need to keep an eye on Sokka. He can't do much with one arm."

The two turned to watch as Sokka received help from the servants and his wife to board the ship.

"When do you think I'll see you again?" Mai said, staring still at the sight of the couple ahead.

"I'm not sure. Soon, I hope." Zuko did not mind if anyone saw him. He embraced her tight with both arms as best as he could and whispered, "Don't worry about me, just keep yourself safe." He pulled away and did not allow any more contact. Without turning back, he left her alone to go back to the ship and headed towards the trio of benders waiting by Appa.

"Ready to go, lover boy?" Tsuchi said with kissy lips. "Or should we wait ten minutes while you two do it in the bushes?"

"You don't even know what you're talking about." Zuko pulled his cloak around himself tighter and bound his arms around his chest.

"Are you ready to go or not? We're waiting on you." Aang tossed his staff on Appa's saddle and turned to face the group. He reached out a hand to Katara and hoisted her onto the bison and jumped up to the front.

Zuko took a hold of the side of the saddle to lift himself up, hoping someone would offer to help him, when Tsuchi grabbed his shoulder.

"Hold on there, buddy," she said and pulled him away from Appa. "There's just one lil' ol' thing I want to do before we go." Without asking for permission, Tsuchi grasped his limp arm on either side of the fracture and in less than a minute of burning pain it stopped. "Now flex macho man."

Zuko moved his fingers without pain. "Did you- did you just—"

"I think the word you're looking for is super freaking awesome." Tsuchi snapped her fingers, both ending up thumbs up with one pointing its index finger at him. "I figure you need to be un-gimped so you can bend. We've got a lot of work ahead of us."

"Are you still upset about your sister?" he said just low enough so she was the only one to hear.

Tsuchi shrugged, face becoming serious. "Of course I am, who wouldn't?"

"I only ask because the last time I saw you with your sister you weren't exactly… getting along."

Tsuchi raised her eyebrow. "Why would we? In her eyes I got the better end of the deal. Not to mention she was working for you, which of course meant against me. But after the war we started talking, this time more civilized. It was like having a family again."

"Don't I wish I had that," Zuko mumbled. "You must hate her. The one who killed your sister."

"If my sister taught me anything, it's that revenge isn't all it's cracked up to be. And it's not going to bring back those who have passed. The best thing I can do is make sure it doesn't happen again. Need help?" Without waiting for an answer, she bended a pedestal up to Appa's saddle. "They only killed my sister, they didn't kill my whole family. If I remember, that was your people who did that."

Zuko scratched the back of his neck, embarrassed. "Sorry about that."

"It's not your fault, personally. Although you may have contributed." Tsuchi tossed her black bag into the corner. "Not saying you did, though."

"So what's our plan going to be?" Katara said after everyone was situated in the correct spots, Aang at the head of Appa and the rest in their corners. "We can't exactly go in there and expect to fight easily. They'll kill us."

"Most of the job is already done," Zuko said, crossing his arms to keep to himself. "We just need to go there and figure out how to make things worse for them. Even if we need to die trying."

"I still think—"

"No, Aang." Katara glowered at the bald monk who tried to make a suggestion. "You're not going to take their bending away and risk injuring yourself."

"Then I suppose you have something better?"

"Why don't we figure that out on the way over, you know, multitask?" Tsuchi said with harshness in her voice. Zuko hoped he had not hit a nerve.

The bison ascended high into the sky and the town and boats below them began to look like children's toys. How far away were they going? From there it could not have been too far. Or to long.

'-'

The raindrop blue green grass, the taller than the sky needletrunks and the jellysquid shrubbery on the forest floor. The familiar fantasy they emerged themselves in flooded back many old memories, both the nostalgic and the scarring. They had arrived no more than a few minutes ago and yet nothing had happened. No ambush, no firing of arms, no life in sight. For those who claimed supremacy over the minds of millions, they certainly failed at anticipating their imminent attack. Unless they already knew and chose to wait elsewhere. Maybe they knew the quad would fail and therefore did not bother to try.

Zuko hoped it was the former most.

"Do you remember where the entrance to this thing is?" Katara asked the lot of them when they dismounted Appa onto the discolored foliage below.

"It was a wall, was it not?" Tsuchi brought up. "Bricks, with inscribed text. Do you remember where?" she asked, directing her question to Zuko who shrugged.

"I followed you here. If anyone should remember, it should've been you three." Zuko pulled his cloak tighter around him. The breeze had increased, unsettling to the lot. Almost an unnatural breeze. Zuko turned to the direction of the wind and saw it. A building, almost out of nowhere.

"It's over here." Without so much as a hint or even a sense of direction, Zuko strode over to the brick wall, running his hand over the texture, a mixture of something he had never felt before. Warm, moist, drying his hands while simultaneously staying a stone. That had to be it.

His fingers trailed over the stones, following it around the bend for who knew how long before stopping. Zuko put his other hand over the stone, both stroking the grey wall with the familiar inscription:

_Avertissant, Cosmo Epée.  
Trouvent détenteur._

A sudden pulse of energy coursed through him, so invigorating and intimidating all at once. Normal suggests removing one's hand, but Zuko kept it there, so intrigued by the energy rushing in him.

"If you found the entrance, how are we supposed to get in?" Katara walked up to stand at Zuko's side, still entranced by the stone mason.

"Do you even remember how we got in the first time?" said Tsuchi as she went to Katara's side. "It just magically opened for us, didn't it?"

"It's a dead end," Aang frowned. "What are we supposed to do now?"

The four exchanged looks with each other, faces weighed down in thought as to their next move.

"I suppose we can just—"

"Are you here to save us?"

The four of them jumped ten feet from their spot, hearts racing. Each turned around to face the voice but saw nothing from the bushes behind them.

"Who's there?" Zuko barked into the shrubbery. "Show yourself!"

An array of mutter came from the shrubbery, several voices arguing amongst each other. Within seconds a loud rustle disrupted their conversation and shoved from the green fell a girl, no older than ten with only half her hair. The girl shot her head up and with fear in her golden eyes. "Idzi!" the little girl cried out. "They know we're all here! Don't leave me by myself."

"How many more are you?" Aang stepped forward to ask, reaching out to take the girl's hand to help her up.

"Just me and two others," the little girl mumbled, dusting off grass and leaves from her solid grey uniform. "Idzi and Zero, who pushed me out!"

"Hey, shut up!" another voice from the bushes, this time a boy's, said.

"Both of you, get out here," Zuko ordered harshly at the duo still hiding and within seconds two young boys stumbled from their hiding spot.

"Thanks for ratting us out, now we're all going to get in trouble," the darkest of the trio glowered at the girl.

"We don't have time to worry about getting into trouble," the girl snapped, smacking her companion on the back of the head. "With what's going on, we'll be lucky if we get out of this with just our arms broken!"

"Just your—what?" Tsuchi intervened, as did Katara, both exchanging looks with Aang.

"My name is Nazrin and the three of us escaped from the Resistance." The little girl stood tall and made sure her stance showed no fear. "In any other circumstance we wouldn't have made it this far. They would've killed us before we could even leave, but right now everyone is fighting with each other, killing each other."

"It's a mess," the boy who had yet to speak added. "We don't know how this happened."

"Wait, they're all fighting?" Katara furrowed her face, stepping forward from the group to crouch down to the children's level. "Why are they all fighting? How did you three escape?"

"Through the ground, ma'am," the little girl, Nazrin, responded. She gestured to the darkest of the children and continued, "Zero is an earthbender and he bended a tunnel for us to escape in. we would've gone through the main entrance, but we were sure to be killed."

This time, Aang stepped forward. "But that doesn't explain why they're fighting. Why is everyone killing each other?"

"We don't know," the one noted as Zero responded. "When we last heard they were saying really mean things to each other, calling each other names and stuff."

The last one, Idzi, spoke next. "Most of what we heard before, they teach us that kind of stuff, but they were saying it to each other. The first rule we learn is never to insult another bender. It's forbidden."

The three kept their focus on the children at hand. Zuko, on the other hand, fought off a smile. Still, his content could not stay confined in himself and he let out a quick sputter of a laugh.

"I'm sorry, did you think this was funny?" Katara's eyes narrowed as she scanned over the chuckling firebender.

Quick to compose himself, Zuko had to keep himself from shouting. "Don't you understand? They're already doing what we need them to do." Zuko turned to the children and continued, "Do you remember seeing a woman, short, black, hair, a scar across her eye, her name is Kurogane—"

"The one who killed the Fire Lord and the mongrel Hiashi, everyone knows her," Idzi replied with a stern face.

Tsuchi's eyes flared. "My sister is not a mongrel you—"

"Take it easy, they're children." Aang held out his arm to keep Tsuchi from stepping any closer to the small trio, but Zuko could not blame her. He wanted to lunge as well.

"To answer your question, no," Nazrin responded, stepping in front of the two boys she was with. "We didn't see her when we escaped, but she returned from a mission just yesterday when the chaos broke out. Did she have something to do with it?"

"Never mind her," Zuko frowned. He crouched down to the girl's eye level, this time to talk to her and not down to her. "Do you really want to continue the life you have now?"

Nazrin lifted a hand to the half of her head with hair, tugging on her small, chocolate ponytail and looked back to her friends, both tired and both looking to the ground. She turned back to look at Zuko square in the eye, keeping her composure as best as she could, whispered, "We don't know how else to live."

Zuko glanced to the Avatar and his companions, all of whom struck with the thought of children in such a life, then to the young girl's companions who refused to take their eyes from the dirt beneath their bare feet. Then his gaze went back to her, the small child with her ember stare and the crinkled rouge skin of her right hemisphere, a texture he knew only all too well. He put a hand to his shoulder, and, saturated in integrity, told her, "I will fix that."

'-'


	23. Dalits

Disclaimer: The following chapter is entirely fictitious. Any similarity to the history of any person living or dead is entirely coincidental and unintentional, except when specifically noted otherwise in the cast and crew credits. All celebrity voices are impersonated and no celebrities have endorsed any aspect of this fic.

Chapter Twenty-Two: Dalits

'-'

The little girl, Nazrin, had not stopped talking since they allowed in the four. While the young girl's cronies remained silent for their whole journey back down into the depths of the Resistance's headquarters, she poised herself almost as an adult among the four real ones. One thing for certain, thought, was that Zuko could not help but stare at the little girl's head. Half her hair was gone. Her right ear was missing. Whatever happened to her spread down past her neck and under her collar. What had she done to get something so horrible?

"You're staring at my head," Nazrin suddenly said in the middle of her conversation to Zuko. The three other adults turned their heads toward his as a small flush of embarrassment spread on his face.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to—"

"It's okay," the little girl said with a weak smile. "I should've known better."

"How did it happen?" Katara asked, now that the conversation turned to that direction.

"I lost a practice sparring. The teacher didn't send me to the infirmary because he said I wouldn't learn anything." Nazrin stopped in front of a large stone-like wall, carved with caution signs, gruesome images of scrawny humanoids subservient to human entities. She placed one palm on the caution sign, face twisting in contemplation. The four adults looked to her companions who had horror written all over them.

"We aren't supposed to go in there!" the shortest boy, Idzi gasped. "They're going to eat our faces!"

Aang cocked an eyebrow. "Who's going to eat your faces?"

"The people on the other sides," the little boy said quietly. "We aren't supposed to go in because they're monsters and they'll eat our faces!"

"You can't go into the Resistance alone," the little girl said to the group. "They might be able to help you."

"We can't get in there anyways," Zero said with anger to Nazrin. "Only a metalbender can get inside."

Tsuchi's face twitched. "Excuse me chillin'," she said, moving Nazrin and the other two aside, "but this is my forte." Placing both hands on either side of the stone-like wall, Tsuchi dug her fingers into the metal and tore the solid piece in half to reveal a black room.

"I don't see any—"

Before Katara could even finish her sentence, the seemingly empty room filled with the sound of hissing and scurrying of people to the back. And from the slightly lit room shot a head from the dark. A skull with skin stretched on top.

"The Dalits," Nazrin gestured inside. "Or—"

"The counterfeit Avatars."

'-'

In the blood pooled across the floor, dismembered bodies strewn in every direction with cremated limbs and human jerky, alongside corpses with caved in craniums and lungs dangling from their mouths, Kurogane walked, making sure not to trip. Moment by moment a new addition found its way to the casualty count from the oldest to the youngest of members. She closed her eyes tightly as she stepped over the smoldering corps of one of the children, the arrogant boy whose arms she pulled from their sockets not weeks ago. No one aimed their attacks towards her but she did not mind in the least since she had no plans to attack anyone. However, her journey was not to exit the headquarters. Rather, her destination was the heart of the operation.

"Resistance members, High Master Keme orders you all to cease your fire," the cowering secretary screamed into the loudspeaker. "All members participating in the fighting in the main lobby and any other area will be punished to the highest degree!"

Kurogane could not see the woman from behind the desk. Already two cremated bodies lied on the top of the desk where the secretary hid, meaning she was not going down without a fight. Kurogane pursed her lips. She mastered murder before, how could one of her own be any different?

Two fist punches was all it took before the screeching woman behind the desk immediately became silent. "I'm so sorry," Kurogane said to the crumpled up heap of person she stepped over to get to the entrance wall to the High Master's office, "I don't have an appointment, but I'm just going to let myself in."

Bending the entrance was not the difficult part, nor was finding her way through the maze of masonry to the High Master's office. No, the difficult part was confronting her attacker. Her boss.

Her enemy.

Her basics came in handy for her at that moment. With one stomp of her foot the wall to the most disgusting being on the planet shattered into forever pieces, exposing the man behind the wall.

"Miss Kurogane," the High Master said in such a smarmy voice, as if he had expected her. "I take it you are here to admit that you failed miserably at your assignment? Or to take responsibility for this chaos?"

"I don't understand what you're talking about, High Master," the woman said, standing as tall as she possibly could. "If you don't mind, I'll drop the bloody formality seeing as how you're more than likely going to die anyways."

The corner of the airbender's mouth twitched before letting out a soft chuckle. "I'm sorry, are you addressing that threat to me? Because it certainly seems so."

"You know damn well I'm talking to you," Kurogane said with her face contracting in a fit of rage. She stormed three steps forward before Keme held out his hand.

"Do you really thing that coming any closer to the High Master is such a good idea, Miss Kurogane?" Keme cocked one of his bushy, perverse brows and smiled. "You know you want to be a good girl and you know exactly what will happen if you try to do anything stupid."

Kurogane narrowed her eyes in disbelief. Flexing one hand behind her back, within a split second Keme began to twist into convulsions. "I think getting violated by a dirty old man is the least of my worries."

'-'

"What are they?" Katara hissed, shielding her mouth like the others to keep from inhaling the putrid smell that came from inside.

"They're the counterfeit Avatars I told you about," Zuko said, stepping into the room, disregarding the smell and the lack of light. "The Resistance made them in case they needed to combat the real Avatar.

"They're going to eat your faces!" Izdi screamed, covering his ears with his hands.

"How dare you, you insolent Resistance scum," one of the skeletons said in such a raspy voice it was almost soundless. The person stepped out from the darkness, perhaps a woman, hunched over and squinting her eyes to protect herself from the dim light pouring in.

The group shoved each other backwards in shock of the person's appearance, frail, pasty, hair so sparse and thin it only fell to one side. The woman stretched herself up as far as she could and caught her jade eyes against Zuko's, who had not back down like the others. Glaring even more, the woman growled. "Who are you?"

"I am Fire Lord Zuko," he said lowly. "I am with the Avatar to put an end to this mess."

Whispers broke out from within the darkness. "Silence!" the woman said to all still hidden and right away they did. She scanned the group over with her pale eyes and glowered. "Those children with you," she said, pointing with the only finger on her right hand to the three behind him, "they are from the Resistance, are they not?"

Zuko turned to look at the frightened children and nodded.

"She's gonna eat our faces!" Idzi screamed again, hiding behind Katara.

"Get those things away from my people!" the woman snarled, swinging her arm down to shoot flames to get everyone back. "You can leave now."

"What do you want from us?" another skeletal figure emerged from the darkness to stand next to the woman. This one, a man, with patches of hair on his head, placed a six-fingered hand on the woman's shoulder to nudge her back a bit. "Will you explain why they have not yet brought us food since the last day? Our people have been starving."

"They're in the midst of a fight," Aang said, finally pushing his way in front of Zuko. "I'm Aang, the real Avatar."

The two humanoids exchanged looks of doubt before turning to look at the slowly emerging people behind them. Ten in total, each as frail as the first two, crawled out from the dark. One with a kerchief around her head and no brow to speak of stood up, shorter than the first two, and whispered, "Are you here to save us?"

"We need your help to end these people," Katara said in a quiet voice to take her place near her boyfriend. "We know you want don't want to live like this. This is not the kind of life you want, is it?"

"We swear to you if you help us you won't have to anymore," Aang assured, holding out his hand to exchange a shake, however the two originals stared at it in disbelief.

"We have heard of this before," the woman snarled, throwing the man's hand from her, "of people making promises they cannot keep. I will not allow you to manipulate us for your personal gain only to discard us like you think you are better than us."

"We are better than you!" Zero screeched from behind Tsuchi, only to evoke a violent reaction from the woman who shot another fire whip towards them.

"Get that thing away from us," she snarled while the man held her back. "We will have nothing to do with you."

"Anki, let them speak!" the girl who crawled from the shadows cried out in a whisper. "He is the Avatar. They do not have the eyes of the wicked. We want to leave. Let them help us."

"You show your ignorance, Peta," the man said to the girl who spoke up. "If they are who they claim then we will surely die aiding them."

"But would not you rather die as a fighter than live another day under their control?"

The others behind them began muttering in their hushed voices, one groaning loud enough to echo down the hall. The one who spoke, Peta, pleaded with the two without any words, glancing to the others behind her. "You know we all want to leave. What about Fu? He needs help. We all do."

The woman addressed as Anki closed her eyes and breathed out in frustration. "She is correct, Yuji," she said to her counterpart. "As disgusted as I am to say so, we all would rather die free than live as slaves. If we do not agree to this then we will never get another chance of freedom."

"You are insane, the two of you," the man, Yuji, said in revulsion. "We cannot trust them."

"Think of Fu." Anki turned to Aang and Zuko. Nodding, she stated, "We agree to help you, but you must look after our youngest members and make sure they will see freedom."

Zuko and Aang exchanged glances and nodded. "We swear to you they will see freedom." Zuko held his hand out, this time Anki shook it.

"Those children are not allowed to say anything about us," Yuji added, pointing one of his twelve fingers at the boys still hiding behind Tsuchi. "And you should know, with them it is kill or be killed. No other option."

'-'

"This comes to as much surprise to me as it does to you," Kurogane smirked as she brought the undulating body of the High Master closer to her. "But understand that I have been dreaming of this for a while. I was just too stupid to do something about it."

"You know someone is going to come looking for me," Keme struggled to say as the bones in his body gradually began to dissolve from the tips of his toes upwards. "They will kill you before you have a chance to kill me."

The corner of Kurogane's mouth curled up slightly. "I highly doubt that seeing as how the body count outside your office is pathetic to say the least. I suppose you aren't as powerful as you like to believe."

The sound of bones crunching echoed loud in the confined space, only making Kurogane smile more.

"I will be honest; I don't know why this hadn't dawned on me earlier just to kill you." Kurogane shrugged. "Perhaps because I knew if I did then your stupid, little followers would come after me and do the same to me. I suppose it was easier to get everyone to kill each other first before I did the same to you. It just made everything easier that you have everyone here trained like little poodle monkeys that they don't even realize that they hate each other. But I recognized it. It might have taken me twenty-seven years too long but I figured it out. And I'm glad I figured out how stupid I've been.

"And I do have to say that the people you had me kill, bravo. Those were some smart people you needed out of your way for total world domination. But do you not see the illogical paradox in all this? Through violence we bring peace? How did you expect people to get on board with what you're doing? None of the other nations will follow what you want, what this society is about, are you insane? I hope you know the Avatar is on his way right now to stop us. Whether or not he succeeds is yet to happen but the fact that you would try and go against him would have only ended in your death eventually.

"And by the way, did you really think I messed up on my assignment? I did not fail miserably, I _chose_ to fail miserably. I am the best assassin you have and that mission was just as easy as the rest of them. How dumb do you think I am? Take out the Avatar first and then everyone else would have fallen easily into place. The sad part is that you severely underestimated me. Albeit, Fire Lord Zuko did push me in the right direction. I suppose you should thank him for this chaos. It's a shame you wanted him killed. He's the kind of man you would have loved."

She knew she had reached the cervical spine of the struggling High Master, only moments away from his skull. Smiling as she knew she reached the base of the man's jaw, she stepped closer to the gelatinous body floating in the air.

"And by the way," she added as she watched the man struggle to fight back, "your only flaw was being born into an ethnicity so peaceful that you have no real way to kill anyone. So peaceful that no matter how evil you became there was no way in Hell that you were going to ever succeed."

The cracking reached the top of his skull as she divided each individual plate in his head. In a last violent swing, Kurogane drew Keme towards her, placing both her claws on his chest, and, with one thrust forward and back, ripped Keme's ribcage out from inside him to expose the entirety of his internal self. Kurogane dropped her blood soaked hands and allowed Keme's limp body to fall to the floor. Staring down at the lifeless man's blood pour out of his body and pool to the floor, Kurogane could not help but lose control of her emotion and suddenly a huge smile broke out on her face as she began to laugh.

"My only regret is that I didn't do this earlier, you disgusting bastard. But you were right," she smiled to the cadaver as she crouched down to analyze her kill. "Murder is an art. Lucky for us, art is subjective." She reached down to the dead man's throat and severed the disintegrated neck from the rest of the body, lifting the head up by the single ponytail of silver hair from behind his head. "And I do believe the Avatar and his friends will enjoy this."

'-'

Insert DeviantArt promotion here. It's been forever since I updated, and I'm so hoping I get reviews, cuz I like reviews. I've been working on another side project not to mention I've been wanting to write a Legend of Korra fic as well. But I'm holding off on that for now because I'm terrible at multitasking. NEHO, I like hearing feedback. Signing Off!


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